Lumiose to Melemele: A Different Trial
by akshat.jain.216
Summary: (loosely based on anime canon) What could attract a veteran trainer like Ash to a school in a league-less Alola? What is Kukui's master plan for him? Can he realise that there is more to life than Pokemon and show growth as an adult? Follow Ash's adventures in Pokemon trainer's school. Bonus: The journeys of Serena and Max, Iris' development and others in one-shot interlude format.
1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

 **Hey guys. I'll admit I'm not necessarily an aspiring writer. I'm just a routine fan of reading and pokémon, and had this idea of a fic which I wanted to try to write. So please bear with my mistakes and feel free to make suggestions, both on the story, the characters, and my grammar.**

 **Okay. So, the idea here is basically that I wanted to make sense of the same Ash who ALMOST won the Kalos league randomly deciding to attend a school in Alola. I'd like to explore what he's there to learn and how he aims to become a Pokémon master. I am trying to keep a sense of continuity with the past seasons (all are considered canon), and so, expect old friends to keep appearing perhaps. I've given Kukui the 'Champion' treatment like the Sun and Moon Games.**

 **This fic might turn out to be episodic like the Anime, but I'll try to keep the story interesting.**

 **To be honest, I've not planned much ahead at present, but there are some things at least which I think will happen.  
**

 **Please read and review :)**

PROLOGUE

 _Professor Kukui's House. Melemele Island, Alola_

Sunday evening found Kukui sitting aimlessly on the couch of his living room. He had spent his whole morning at his 'lab,' which was basically a nice stretch of inland forest where he kept all his pokémon (along with those of most of the other Melemele trainers who had more pokémon than a full team), researching moves. He sighed contentedly as he thought back towards his progress from today. _Why exactly couldn't Incineroar produce a stronger heat wave than his flamethrower… I guess the belt is good enough for focussed attacks, but…_ Lost in his thoughts, he stretched his legs over the table with his right heel landing on a button on some kind of remote. Pulled away from his reverie, he figured out he could watch the TV for a while.

"Sponsors for this broadcast…" Noticing the 'live' label near the logo of AlolaSport1, he wondered what could the telecast be about. Since there was as much chance of it being something like Poke-ringer as of being a high-profile battle, he chose to wait. Soon enough, the screen showed a full stadium with the iconic Lumiose Tower visible in the backdrop. After showing the spider-cam view of what looked like a rocky terrain battlefield with a nice waterfall, the screen focussed on a young man wearing a formal indigo suit and having an air of command. _"The battle between Ash and Alain is about to get underway! When all six of either trainer's pokémon are unable to continue, the battle will be over. In addition, when three of the pokémon on either side are unable to continue, the battlefield will change. Bring out your pokémon!"_

As the roar of crowd intensified, a Pikachu and a Tyranitar was sent out by the opponents. _So, a 6-on-6 league match on a Sunday… Has to be at least third-place match. Hmm, a Pikachu at this level? Must be another potential Champion-level pokémon… and a Sand stream Tyranitar huh? Decent size too… looks strong. Certainly has the advantage if it knows a ground-type move…_ Kukui speculated, intrigued. _"Alright! Battle BEGINS!"_

 _"Get ready Alain!"_

 _"Bring it on Ash."_

 _Oh, a hot flamethrower against a controlled psybeam… The two seem to know each other too. Interesting._

The battle began with a Dark Pulse from the Tyranitar, which the Pikachu dodged by jumping away and striking the water from the small stream with an Iron tail. _Creative… Sand stream done for and Tyranitar soaked?_ Kukui chuckled, having a good guess where it was going to go from here. Pikachu managed to get a direct hit with a thunderbolt before its electroball was countered by a stone edge. The Tyranitar smashed the stone edge with its tail, sending debris flying towards its opponent, who batted almost all away with Iron tails. _The Pikachu certainly has high speed and both kinds of attacks, though that may be due to all that water… Lucky kid. But seems like he's too focused on avoiding a hit… average defence?_ The Tyranitar tried to crunch a suspended Pikachu but was countered by Iron tail. Flinging the rodent away, Tyranitar was struck by an electroball, knocking it out. _"Impressive win no doubt. And Ash is off to an early lead!"_ Both trainers recalled their pokémon, sending out a Noivern and a Weavile. Kukui winced, wondering if the flying dragon would be able to hold up against the quick Ice-type for the two minutes before the next allowed substitution. As he had suspected though, the Noivern didn't really stand a chance. _Both sides even… Well, there are certainly worse ways to spend a Sunday eve._

 _Sinnoh Champion Cynthia's Villa, Undella Town, Unova_

Eyes glued on the screen, Cynthia shook her head as one of Ash's pokéball opened on its own accord to reveal a bird-like pokémon. _He really needs to be strict occasionally with his pokémon._ She sighed, recalling the tendencies of his Oshawatt from their last meeting. She suspected Ash would have to use this pokémon next despite a disadvantage unless the opponent allowed the switch. Still, she didn't want her young friend to lose this match; she knew that with his habit of travelling so much and resetting his team for every journey, there was no guarantee when will he ever have an equally strong team going into a new league. From what she had learnt about him, he didn't really plan his captures from a region and most of his pokémon chose him than the other way. The contrast between him and her teenage self couldn't have been greater. Like she had learnt the value of forming loving relationships with pokémon on her journeys, Ash needed to learn the importance of picking strong, battle-suited and disciplined pokémon if he wanted the championship. When she saw the Hawlucha wheedle Ash into letting it take over the battle, she sighed. _He's going to lose his advantage_. She had wanted his Sinnoh rival- _Paul_ , she recalled- to be able to influence Ash as much has he was influenced, but even though Ash had matured as a battler, he hadn't become as assertive as he needed to be away from the field.

 _I almost feel tempted to ask Professor Oak to transfer his mentorship rights to me, though there is no polite way. Anyways, what came of trying to track him down in Unova and inviting him here? I would have been able to help him work with most of his experienced battlers, but to be honest his Unovan team was mediocre; not useless, it had been years since I've thought of any pokémon in THAT way, but simply not capable of being in any champions' leagues. Plus, I had to spend a lot of my free hours protecting Meloetta…_

She cut her train of thoughts as the battle resumed after the brief pause. She realised that the bird must also be a fighting type from its battle style. Not that it seemed to matter to the fast-dodging Weavile though… When the opponent ordered an ice beam at the pokémon's feet, the flying-type had to open a gap between the two as well as deal with an ice battlefield. She thought this was it until the camera focussed on Ash's face and showed him looking awfully smug. The next few minutes were simply amazing, as his pokémon took super-effective ice beams as well as powerful night slashes without really showing strain. Finally, a high-jump kick and a 'flying-press?' was sufficient to knock out the Weavile. _Good strategy. My Glaceon wouldn't have fallen though… her ice-beam would simply have been too strong_. That was the problem with being as strong as she was; she couldn't really expect a match out of most good battlers simply because of the raw power her pokémon possessed. And when the trainers had power… They usually turned out to be all power. _Tobias had turned out to be a disappointment too. Boy she wanted a challenge._ That's why she wanted Ash to understand that catching strong pokémon and raising them with affection go hand-in-hand to produce quality partners for trainers with battling prowess like him.

The opponent wasted little time in sending out Bisharp and ordering a thunder wave to paralyse Ash's bird. _Good one…_

 _Professor Kukui's House. Melemele Island, Alola_

Kukui finally released his breath as the first half of the battle was finally concluded with an exciting aerial bout between an Unfezant and a Talonflame which ended in a double-KO. As the field was replaced by a grass-field, the camera showed the faces of the two trainers. It seemed to Kukui that one of them was either making a boast or complimenting his opponent, who was smiling. He felt that excitement of the battle was acting like syncronoise on both of them as well as the viewers. And him. The pokémon finally sent out were a Metagross and the Pikachu, again. Though there was a possibility that this round would be a repeat of Pikachu vs Tyranitar, the trainer Alain had to have thought of a counter by now. This was certainly verified when the Metagross began outmanoeuvring Pikachu using its Agility. _A high speed IV Metagross… Huh._ It managed to strike with a metal claw before landing a stone edge. Surprisingly though, Pikachu pulled through. And again, after a Meteor Mash. _Good endurance for a Pikachu… could be on Eviolite though, but are they allowed in the freestyle trainer leagues? Wonder how strong will it be when it evolves. Might give Incineroar a good match._ Even more surprisingly, it overpowered the next meteor mash with an electroball, before jumping on the steel-type's body. _Checkmate_ , Kukui chuckled, as Metagross was left unconscious within the next few seconds.

The older trainer sent out a Charizard on the battlefield. Kukui gasped on noticing its neckpiece. _Is that… a Mega-stone? It certainly looked somewhat like those stones sold in the battle tree_. Pikachu started off with a quick attack and then launched a massive thunderbolt. When Charizard wasn't ordered to dodge the super-effective move even when it had to go down on a knee to maintain its balance, Kukui knew. _This is the pokémon of his team. Certainly champion level._ This was further emphasised when the flurry of attacks launched by Pikachu ended to reveal it virtually unharmed, and fully established when it finally bought the opposite 'champion potential' pokémon down without being significantly winded.

The trainer Ash sent out a Goodra as Alain returned the Charizard for his Bisharp. _Well… pulling out your strongest out of the battle against a pseudo-legendary._ Kukui got psyched having already figured out the familiarity between the opponents. _What's coming has to be even stronger._ As soon as this round started though, Kukui realised that the Goodra had a poor moveset. _As such, neither Dragon Pulse nor Ice beam could hurt a steel-type much, so the only way to hurt it was bide. Now that I think, His Noivern too… Only Dragon Pulse, Boomburst and Air Slash… Nothing for steel types. Lucky that Pikachu took out Metagross…_ After a few moments, he realised, _even his Pikachu: Quick attack, Thunderbolt, Electroball, Iron tail… most other electric types will handle it easily. Hawlucha had no elemental punches. Talonflame's set wasn't much better._ Kukui found himself deep in thought. _Must take a heck of a battler to make it so far in such a competitive league, given he's fighting with such limited movesets in his pokémon. Hell, one of them is a Pikachu! Even a champion-level one can't survive a lot of hits._ Kukui mentally noted his desire to know more about this trainer and his methods. He looked up to find the Goodra, indeed, unconscious. Bisharp wasn't in the best shape either, implying the use of a successful bide. The next pokémon sent out was a Greninja. _Must be his starter. Why save a Charizard for It though?_ However, when the Greninja put Bisharp away with a single water shuriken after dodging an iron head effortlessly using an extremely well executed double-team, Kukui decided that the Charizard can simply not take it, however good it was. Unless it mega-evolves.

However, Charizard did not mega-evolve. It came in with a flamethrower, which the Greninja dodged before coming in with cut. "Seriously?" Even though the cut attack pushed it back, the Charizard still seemed largely unfazed. What happened next, however, shocked Kukui, who stood up surprised as the Greninja transformed into a different form, which bore a striking resemblance to its trainer's outfit and was complete with raven-brown hair. In response, Alain finally mega evolved his Charizard, who changed its whole coloration to reflect the draconic energy now rushing into its blood along with its fire, which took a shade of light blue.

What followed next was so intense Kukui dared not blink. Although things almost became a blur, Kukui did notice the sheer power of Charizard's flames which were used to make Greninja's double team useless, the surprise use of cut to defend against the flamethrower effectively ( _note to self: explore the defensive potential of cut against beam attacks_ ), the sheer power of the blast burn and the water shuriken, how Ash seemed to be affected when Greninja took damage… However, Kukui realised that mega-Charizard X was overpowering the strange transformed ninja-frog bit by bit. It had the stronger attacks and the better moveset. Its dragon claw was stronger than Greninja's cut, its flamethrower was somehow as strong as water shuriken (which arguably is not the best attack to have as your only same type move), and when it began using thunderpunches, its odds of winning shot up even more on account of it having the only super-effective move on the battlefield. However, It all seemed to change when Greninja managed to fire an ORANGE water shuriken, which was countered by a hasty blast burn by Alain. When the smoke from the resulting explosion finally cleared, it revealed a Charizard down on its knees facing a Greninja standing nonchalant.

Before Kukui could figure out what exactly happened, Greninja inexplicably collapsed along with its trainer.

 _Sinnoh_ _Champion Cynthia's Villa, Undella Town, Unova_

After noticing the special Greninja, and strangely Ash, collapsed on the floor, Cynthia let out a breath. Honestly, her head was a swirl of thoughts and she wasn't really sure what to make of everything that happened. She could feel excitement from the battle, anticipation of being able to let Garchomp loose against that amazing Charizard, desire of facing Ash's Greninja sooner rather than later, confusion over the strange orange water shuriken which seemed stronger than the regular one but was either overpowered by the blast burn (which the normal one had countered) or (perhaps more likely) was so exhausting it caused Greninja and Ash to pass out against all odds... sadness for her friend who was so close, pride over Ash's achievements in Kalos, concern for his safety, awe at Pikachu's performance against the two pseudo-legendaries, curiosity over how strong would it be when it evolves, irritation over Ash's acceptance of his pokémon who 'choose not to evolve'…. She decided she needed to compose her mind first.

On the flip side, Ash will probably return to Pallet Town sometime soon, and she might finally be able to talk to him over telephone after what was almost a year.

 _Oak Labs, Pallet Town, Kanto_

"Not this year then," Delia observed neutrally after the result finally sunk in to the small gathering in the living room of Professor Oak's residence.

"I'm sorry Mrs. Ketchum," Tracey said, "I expected him to pull through when his Greninja transformed, but it was a great battle anyway...?"

"Thanks Tracey, but don't worry about me. I'd have been sad, but did you notice how much he enjoyed the battle? Did you see that smile he and Pikachu had throughout? I don't care if he loses, as long as he keeps having fun doing what he loves. Plus, this only means he's going to return home any day now!" Delia replied with a smile which seemed genuine, though a tear still escaped her eye.

"He's getting there though," observed one of Professor Oak's outfield research assistants who happened to be paying a rare visit to Pallet town, and who also happened to be Ash's first real rival. "I mean, had he been using this team in Johto or Hoenn, he'd have won. It's only a matter of time." _Not that I'd say this to Ashy-Boy's face._

"I suspect that's why he's still traveling," observed Tracey. "I mean, had he stopped after Johto, Hoenn or Sinnoh, he'd have missed out on his Greninja for starters. Plus, he was much better than ever before in this tournament."

 _How right you are Tracey,_ Professor Oak thought for the umpteenth time. _It's clear to anyone who watches closely that Ash has been an elite level battler since back in Sinnoh. The only things holding him back are the variable strength of his Pokémon, his team building and his move selection._ He sighed, as he headed towards the lab to be able to think. _Nothing that can't be fixed if he spends a little time here with me... But I can't stop him from going to some new place if he wants, isn't it?_ He knew that it wasn't true; that Ash would listen if he just asked. However, since the day he came barging in the lab in his pyjamas back then, the only time he had been home for more than a week was during his first year and then after Sinnoh. Back then he was too depressed from his league loss to really think much about his future. But Samuel Oak had never stopped him, had never tried to correct him over his mistakes. Although most kids learn about strong Pokémon, type advantage etc in their childhood, Ash had no one to teach him. Not even the professor himself. Wasn't it just an honest mistake though? He thought back to the rash, energetic and naive kid that was Ash before he left. He didn't even know how to use a pokéball and had a starter who should most likely have run away even before Ash could have left Pallet far behind. Oak had thought Ash incapable of being a good trainer, and had wanted him to leave that dream behind and return home to his mother before he hurt himself out there. _But he had survived all odds then, and he keeps surviving them now._

Though Oak didn't really beat himself up over it, he still felt guilty over not being a good mentor for Ash. _I would have made it up to him if he had stayed back for a while, but I dare not make the suggestion._ It was not a matter of being afraid, rather it was just that he always looked forward to the data and interactions Ash bought back with him for the Pokémon of any region he set feet on. Even legendaries. He was ashamed that his personal research demanded him to let Ash keep visiting new regions and meeting new Pokémon.

He walked up to a shelf affixed on the wall facing his work bench and pulled out a file. Scanning his pages, he found what he was looking for.

 _International League of Pokémon Relations, Kanto Chapter_

 _Registration of Trainers Under League Mentorship Program._

 _Name: Ash Ketchum_

 _Father's Name: unknown_

 _Mother's_ _Name: Delia Hanako Ketchum_

 _Mentor's Name: Professor Samuel Oak_

 _Age (must be less than 18): 16y_

 _Why should he be considered for the scholarship (if outside first year as a trainer)?_

The professor quickly jotted down a few words describing his final league performance, which added to his other accomplishments from Kalos (written down from what Ash told him through his calls), should make a compelling case to keep him funded for another year.

The leagues all over the world funded new trainers in their first year of journey along with providing them a starter. This, they reasoned, was to provide everyone a chance to be able to form bonds with Pokémon. However, if a person managed to get through a year, he was expected to take care of himself henceforth: no more free pokémon centres and the like. This is one reason why most trainers who continued past their one year stayed in their home regions, or at most travelled their neighbouring ones; although most people simply got tired after a while. But if a trainer bought some benefit to the league from his journeys, he could still get funded from the league. This is why Ash was still able to keep up his wanderlust... His Dex entries were far more valuable to professor Oak and the league than what it cost to let him travel far and wide. Not to mention his work on bringing down criminal organisations and averting crises.

 _Suggested Funds: 15,000 poké/month_

 _Next course of action:_

Oak wondered what Ash would do next, where he would go and when. He hoped that Ash could stay home for a bit, so that Oak could at least fulfil his duties as a mentor besides simply taking care of his protégé's Pokémon till he comes of age. He left that section blank and closed the file. _I'll complete it once Ash returns._

With Delia having returned to her home and the professor having busied himself, Tracey and Gary were left to their own devices. They were currently talking over a mug of coffee in the kitchen.

"What's gotten into Gramps today, eh Trace? He's kept himself in the lab all day," Gary wondered.

"I don't really know but I think it's something to do with Ash," Tracey speculated. "This happens every time he's about to return from somewhere."

"Oh... I haven't been around when he's here forever, isn't it? Man, Gramps makes me do all his fieldwork," Gary complained.

"I know, right?" Tracey chuckled. "But if not you, who else? It's not like Daisy's gonna stop coordinating like you."

"Yeah, yeah I asked for it..." Gary grumbled. He returned to their previous conversation. "What about Ash though?"

"I don't really know, but I think he might just be excited to see Ash's pokédex."

"Huh? Last I checked, he doesn't catch many Pokémon. Why then?"

"Let me see… when was the last time he called you? Or you him?"

"Me? Call Ashy-boy?" Gary snorted haughtily, as Tracey rolled his eyes. With a serious tone, Gary said, "Nah I spend my time in forests. He's the last person I can call, given how hard he is to track down. I'm positive he doesn't call anyone anyway." Gary took a sip out of his mug.

"You're wrong about that. Ash calls his mom and us from every pokémon centre he checks in to talk to his pokémon and to discuss their training routines. There's a reason Delia is fine with him travelling as much as he does. I've heard from Brock that he also calls him, Misty and his other friends who have settled down after his every gym battle. Iris once said that he spends 5-6 hours in the Pokémon Centre videophone booth after every badge."

"5-6 hours? Overdoing much, isn't he?" Gary smirked mischievously. "Oh, I get it now. He might just want to brag about his gym badges to everyone who still listens. What about I knock the whiny kid down a peg or two when he returns?" He laughed along with Tracey.

"Hey, he's not that bad, you know? He doesn't brag about badges anymore. Perhaps he's got enough of 'em. It's just his stories... You've never travelled with him, so I don't think you'd understand."

"Hmm... I did run into him in Sinnoh. Come to think of it, things were crazy back then. Even in Johto... kay point taken. But what about his Pokédex?"

"Have you ever seen his dex?"

"How can I? Isn't his dex always with him?"

"Oh no. Well, let's see… Follow me." Tracey headed to professor Oak's bedroom, and picked up a normal-looking Pokédex from his night table. "This is Ash's Unova Pokédex and professor's current night time reading material. Go on, have a look."

For the next few minutes, Gary's eyes kept widening and his jaw kept getting slacker. After what seems like an eternity, he mouthed "Ze- zek-rom? Reshi" hic "ram? Victini? TorNADUS? THUNDURUS? LANDORUS? HOW MANY LEGENDARIES HAS THE GUY SEEN?"

It's quite a sight, seeing Gary flustered. Tracey let out a chuckle. Enjoying his misery, Tracey silently handed him Ash's Sinnoh Dex.

 _5 minues later_

Tracey and Gary were now in a storeroom on the first floor of Oak residence. Gary was panting, his head a swirl of emotions. Tracey had patiently given Gary some time to recover. Seeing him slightly composed, Tracey noted, smug, "Seems like you understand now."

"Oh, HELL I do." Gary said. "How does he manage to see all known pokémon in every region he goes? Is he a Legendary magnet or something?"

"More like a trouble magnet, you know. He runs into trouble everywhere, and just has to help everyone, without giving a rattata shit about his time. No doubt he ends up seeing every pokémon ever caught in a region this way." Tracey replied.

"It makes sense, putting it like that." Gary mused. He paused with his mug held to his mouth. "This at least explains why he always ended up being behind me in Kanto and Johto. And in Hoenn and Sinnoh… Didn't he waste time cheering for some contest-goers there? Is it me, or he could have become a champion somewhere by now if he simply started behaving like a normal trainer?"

"Never really thought about that." Tracey reflexively moved in to defend his old friend from his ex-rival. "Still, he improves every region. Even in Kalos, he had to spend time on Serena's Pokémon Showcases, and he came second. He's not that old, anyway, that Alain guy was much older. I think It's only a matter of time he wins a big tournament."

"Unless he does a Unova." Gary snorted. "Man, but his team was shit in that league."

"Never let him hear that," chuckled Tracey. "By the way, you know this Serena literally fawns on him? If only I knew his secret."

"This one too? Hahaha. Another poor girl bites the dust. How long would it take for them to figure out their chances? Misty says the guy's still as clueless as he was at 10."

"You're in touch with Misty?"

"Eh… don't ask. I tried to hit on her once, but she seemed like she hasn't gotten over Ashy-boy yet. At least the others understood that he's hopeless and moved on. Imagine, a guy who friend-zones girls left, right and centre." Both assistants laughed. "Anyway, tell gramps I'm taking all these dexes with me. They are pure gold."

"Don't worry about them. Professor wouldn't notice, he's getting a fully-filled Kalos-dex soon. Plus, he's gonna have his hands full with Ash-Greninja for a few weeks… unless Ash runs off somewhere again, that is. Night."

"Yeah, good night."

 **How did you find it? This was just a prologue, but I'm setting up Kukui as a mentor/father figure for Ash. You might not like my treatment of Cynthia, but I remember she outright claims that she used to be like Paul in her first DP episode. As for her and Ash being in phone call terms, I find it the only way to explain why Dawn attended the little cup and why Cynthia offered her (and Ash) her Unova home for weeks.**

Note **: IV- something like genes. Just so you know, high speed IV means that the Pokémon has naturally high speed. So, if such a Pokémon is trained similarly to another Pokémon with lower IV, it will finally have greater speed.**

Eviolite **is a held item which boosts defenses of a non fully-evolved pokémon, and the only explanation why Pikachu randomly turns into a tank in some anime battles.**

 **Please review, and share your ideas. Would you like any special Pokémon for Ash's team**? **Thanks.**


	2. 1

**Author's Note:**

 **I decided to upload this today since I felt that the prologue was feeling somewhat lonely out there, and Ash had yet to make an appearance in this fic. I'd like his personality to come out as somewhat like DP and XY(Z) but with a touch of SM goofiness. I hope to pull it off.**

 **Please read and review :)**

 **WARNING: This chapter might be a bit high on drama. Hopefully I won't overdo it in the future.**

 _CHAPTER_ _1_

Midnight was hardly the perfect time to gaze upon landscapes, but it was as good as any other time to be back. And if you had a home at a place like Pallet town, its quaint hills and serene grassy terrain were ideal for making you feel welcome... unless you returned at midnight.

None of it mattered to Ash Ketchum and Pikachu, who had finally arrived here from Kalos, after a long flight and quite a bit of walking (running in a normal human's dictionary). The duo was currently trying to take in their first sight of hometown, despite the dark. They took a deep breath, relishing the sensation of having the familiar air rush into their lungs for the first time in months, before Ash set off running towards the only source of light in the neighbourhood: home. He slowed down as he reached the door, bursting with anticipation.

"It's good to be back, buddy."

"Pi-kachu!"

Smiling, he pushed the door wide open, and was immediately grabbed in a tight hug by a waiting Delia. "Mom, gerroff! I'm tired!" exclaimed Ash half-heartedly while himself returning his mom's hug. Pikachu jumped on Delia's shoulder and nuzzled her cheek while squealing in delight. After a few minutes, Delia relented. Holding Ash at an arm's length, she inspected him critically.

"Hmm… you've grown taller. Quite fit too, but that wasn't ever a problem with you… seems like you've been eating less though, you've gotten thin. And your skin's grown darker. And you're all sweaty and grimy. You really need to clean up… I know! I'll fix you up some dinner while you shower!" Delia finished with a flourish. Ash laughed.

"Mom!" he said, "I missed you too. But cut out the fuss and let me in already!"

Delia mimed sobbing. "And he's acting like he's all grown up and not my baby anymore!" Seeing Ash uncomfortable, she giggled. "Fine. Come on in, I've prepared dinner's already!" She chirped happily, steering Ash right to the dining table. Seeing Ash's face fill with joy at the prospect of having something cooked by her, she sighed contentedly. _Oh Ash, I know you need to travel. But I miss you so much whenever you do._

Ash and Pikachu devoured their food at a breakneck pace. Delia knew better than to attempt drawing Ash into a conversation while he was so focused on his meal. She knew that Ash loved her, but his love for her cooking was equally strong, if not stronger. Delia smiled happily, watching her son eat in silence.

After wiping his plate clean, Ash jumped straight into his favourite armchair in the living room. Delia cleaned the table up and followed him out. "Where's Mimey?" He asked when Delia arrived.

"Oh, I made him go to sleep just a few minutes ago. You really are late." She frowned for a moment, then asked excitedly, "So, how do you feel about this journey, runner-up of the Lumiose Conference?"

"Didn't we just talk about it this morning?" Ash reminded her, before adding, "like I said, it was awesome! I had so much fun, met so many cool new Pokémon and people, made so many new friends, found out about mega-evolution… Aah! It was totally worth it."

"Does seem like it. I have to say, you seem to be taking your loss in the final remarkably well. I remember how after you came back from Sinnoh, you tended to sometimes become quiet and moody."

"Yeah, and stopped training… you don't have to remind us, we did suffer a lot in Unova due to being out of shape, right buddy?" Ash looked towards Pikachu, who nodded emphatically. "Yeah right, not falling into that trap again! Anyways, what if I lost? Alain was really strong, and his Charizard was awesome! When he waited to mega-evolve his Charizard until I sent out Greninja against him, I was sure he was getting cocky, but man his Charizard was strong. It was still a great battle, and we gave it our all."

 _You really have grown up to be a remarkable young man, Ash._ Delia thought to herself. "I'm happy you think so, as I and professor Oak certainly do. I don't understand much about battling, but even I enjoyed your final match very much. And when you both smiled during the middle… I'm so happy you can enjoy something so greatly, Ash. So how was the trip back?"

"Nothing special… the flight was okay. And then Brock and Misty were there to meet me at the Airport… Misty was more interested in my Greninja though, and bit my head off when I told her he wasn't with me. We spent some time together, but I left them early as I didn't want to keep you waiting. I knew you'd wait till I came back." Ash smiled. "I might visit them sometime while I'm here… though I think you should get some sleep," he added, having noticed her mom trying unsuccessfully to stifle a yawn.

"Yes, but please, before we turn in, tell me something important. How long will you be staying, and where will you be going next? Though you haven't turned up with someone like Alexa this time, I still need to be sure how you want your new outfit to be and other things..." Delia asked with some trepidation. Pretending to buy her excuse about why she inquired, he replied, "I don't really know. This time, as you said, there was no one like Alexa, who could get me psyched about a new region and Pokémon. I also didn't face any Pokémon I've never seen before this time in the league, or even before that… and I battled a lot more than usual throughout Kalos. So, I really have no idea what to do next. But, at the moment I'm not going anywhere for a while."

Delia beamed, relaxing visibly. "Good! I so look forward to having you home again! Okay, good night!"

"Yeah, good night. I'll be staying up for a bit."

"Jetlag?"

"And a lot of sleep in the plane. Though I don't know what to do now…"

"Maybe someone'll be up back in Kalos, or in Unova...?" Delia suggested.

"Yeah, right! I bet Clemont, Iris or Cilan would be happy to talk too. Thanks mom, sleep well! And don't wake me up early tomorrow!" Ash requested while already dialling a number on the phone.

A little girl with unusually bright yellow hair picked up a call from the Lumiose tower. "Lumiose City gym, state your business!", she intoned. Ash couldn't help but laugh, which made the girl look up, miffed. Seeing the caller's face, she exclaimed happily, "Ash! How great of you to call! I was getting so bored! I never realised how boring living all alone is before we travelled! How was your trip back? The flight was okay? And-"

"Hey Bonnie, just relax will ya?" Ash gently reminded Bonnie of his presence over the line. He sympathetically added, "it's all right. I too used to feel the same way at home after I started traveling, but you need to remember that you are never alone! Just like I'll always have Pikachu with me, you'll have Dedenne, isn't it? And you've got Clemont and all his Pokémon too! Can you imagine how hard it used to be for me?"

"But you never had to stay at home for more than a few days! And I won't be able to go on my journey till I'm ten! No fair! And Dedenne sleeps half the time! And even Clemont is being boring! He's spending all his free time working on new inventions! And he now also has challengers at the gym!" Bonnie retaliated.

Ash smiled nostalgically. _You seem so much like Max two years ago... Wait, is he gonna turn ten this year?_ "It's fine, Bonnie. At least you've got a taste. Not to mention all the friends you've made. I bet when you finally set off, you'll have a much easier time than I had. Besides, you staying at the gym means I'll know where to call whenever I'm able to!"

Bonnie was swayed by Ash's positivity. It was one of the things she liked so much about Ash: he always was able to cheer people up and affect them with his optimism. "Yep! I want you to call us every time you can! And I promise you I'll become even stronger than you are!" She replied with spirit.

"And I'll get even stronger, and then the next time we meet, let's have a battle!"

"All right!"

"So, Clemont is having a gym battle?"

"Yeah... We were really surprised when someone challenged the gym so soon after the league. He has only just recieved his starter from professor Sycamore! And guess what he chose?"

"Let me guess... A Froakie?"

"Correct! And he said he's going to get himself an Ash-Greninja! You've become so popular here, you know? It's almost sad Clemont will have to teach him about type advantage the hard way..."

Ash was clearly flattered by this small piece of news. _So, I've gotten famous, huh? Well Greninja certainly was cool._ "It's good to see things returning to normal after team Flare... Anyway, when Greninja returns, ask Clemont to give a call here. Even if I'm not here, my mom will tell where to send him."

"Right, I'll remember." Bonnie smiled mischievously. "You know your girlfriend has reached the Petalburg city Pokémon centre? She called an hour ago."

Caught off guard, Ash blurted out, "I don't have a girlfriend!"

Bonnie teased, "but you kissed! On the lips! And right in front of the whole world! What else does it mean?"

"Honestly, I don't understand it yet myself." Ash blushed slightly, realising who she meant. "Not even my mom has done that before. I don't even know who to ask! Everyone will laugh at me."

Bonnie sighed inwardly. _Of course, Ash. It's just like you to still be confused. Even I know more than you about romance, and I'm eight!_ "You could ask Serena, you know. I'm sure she won't laugh. She said she can't sleep, and it is night time in Hoenn, but she was nervous calling you."

"Why would she be nervous? Besides, I don't think I can call her yet." Ash checked the wall clock. "It's nearly 1:30 in the morning here, and I don't want to wake a local Nurse Joy up just to find the Petalburg city Pokémon centre phone number. I'll do that tomorrow."

"No! She might leave by then! You know what, I'll tell you the number, she called us remember?" Bonnie quickly looked somewhere, scribbled something on a piece of paper, and sent it through the input flap. After making sure Ash had received it, she giggled. "Make sure to call! I'm gonna check with Serena! You have 2 hours!" She hung up abruptly.

Ash was slightly irritated with the kid's display. Sighing, he looked at the slip of paper.

 _945-254-254_

PS _. She's nervous because she loves you, silly! And more than as a friend._

Wondering what she could have possibly meant by her being nervous due to her 'loving him more than a friend', Ash decided to get some advice before calling her. Maybe Cilan could help... Deciding on a whim, he dialled another number.

The call was received by a blue haired young adult on the other end. "Hello? Oh, it's Ash. Cilan!" He called out behind him, which temporarily caused a kitchen to come into view.

"Hey Cress! So, it's your turn to manage the restaurant today?" Ash asked.

"Yep. There's not much rush at the gym, with the league only 2 months away, so me and Chili were handling the restaurant. Congrats by the way. Your Greninja was cool. I bet you'll catch more water types from now on, given how great he proved to be."

"So, you still have your little rivalry going?" Ash chuckled. "I sure hope so, but I don't really know which Pokémon I'll end up catching... It's usually whoever wants to train with me."

Cress shrugged, but couldn't reply as a voice interrupted, "I'll take over from here. Cress can you stay at the gym?"

"Of course. We do need to have someone there, after all."

"Thanks. Hey Ash! You and your Pokémon bought out some delectable flavours in the league. The final especially was a choice blend of spices." Cilan greeted.

"Hey Cilan. How's everything going?" Ash asked with an amused smile. _Flavours and spices. Cilan..._ "It's been a while."

"Yes, it has. I see you're back home too?"

"Just arrived tonight. Couldn't sleep..."

"Oh, I get it. Fine... I can help you pass some time, there isn't much to do for me here anyway. Being the first gym, we aren't going to see much action till the league happens in autumn. I already miss traveling." Cilan sighed.

"Why did you stop though? I bet there's much to learn for even you, isn't there?"

"It isn't fair to Cress and Chili though. Besides, I don't dream of being a Pokémon master or something, I just wanted to study why you and Pikachu share such a great bond as I thought finding out why you two are so compatible would help me become better at advising people on what Pokémon will suit them. And to be honest, it's working quite well till now. I might even be S class by the time you finish your next trip!" Cilan explained excitedly.

"Really? Awesome! Pikachu would have liked to hear it too!" Ash cheered, pleased that his friend was making progress.

"So, Pikachu isn't suffering from jetlag?" Cilan asked having finally noticed a Pikachu-shaped void on Ash's shoulder, who replied, "I dunno, but I don't think he really slept in the flight. He was enjoying looking out of the window too much I think."

"Oh. Any new stories to tell since your eighth badge?" Cilan asked, curious.

"Honestly, there's been so much I can't choose. Or maybe I can..." Ash nervously rubbed the underside of his nose. "Hey Cilan, what does it mean if someone kisses you on the lips?"

Cilan gasped. "Did she actually do?" He mumbled, looking up to see Ash nervously nod his head, before catching something and looking up in alarm. "Wait! Who do you think did?"

"Serena of course!" Cilan seemed to try to restrain himself, but failed and started laughing. "Hehe Ash! Finally, someone does something meaningful! I can already taste the juicy stories coming out of this. Wow. You totally made my day!"

"Hey, cut it out! What's funny about it? And how did you figure out?" An embarrassed Ash asked.

Having paused for a bit to catch his breath, Cilan noted, "don't forget you're talking to a detective connoisseur, Ash! It was so obvious anyone who isn't you could have told. Remember when you called after you won your first badge? You didn't get to see her reaction like I did when you introduced her to me as your 'new friend and official member of the team!' She was as red as a freshly baked pie! It was almost like Iris back in the day!" Ash gasped as Cilan realised what he had just revealed.

"Does it mean Iris also wanted to kiss me?" Ash asked timidly after having composed himself somewhat. "I really cannot imagine that happening. She'd just call me a kid." The faint red tint from his cheeks wouldn't go away however.

Cilan was certainly enjoying this conversation. "I didn't think she'd have gone that far but the feelings were certainly there. Did you never wonder why she followed you throughout Unova?"

"Huh. She didn't really answer it. She'd always turn the conversation around." Ash was now barely audible. "So even Iris...?"

"And Misty, May and Dawn too from Brock's stories," Cilan said going for the kill. "Though he thinks May and Dawn moved on. Misty somehow doesn't understand her feelings yet. And this isn't to mention the girls you've met on the road. I think Bianca might have had a thing for you too."

This scared Ash no end. "Whoa! So, do all girls do this? Do they like to kiss people on the lips?" Cilan burst laughing. "Never seen a romantic movie, have you?"

"Nah. I've only seen two or three movies since I began traveling. I don't care much for them," Ash replied, puzzled.

"Course you didn't. I knew you were clueless, but this takes some beating." Cilan chuckled.

"Hey, cut it out! It's not my fault I don't get it okay? Can't you simply explain me what it means already!"

Cilan figured he should hold his mirth for his friend's sake. "Okay, but just tell me what exactly happened and what you did after," he gave Ash a meaningful look, "just so I can be sure."

"Well, you see..." Ash quickly explained the whole scene, right from where Serena said he was her goal and she'll become stronger for him to when she ran up the escalator, kissed him and went away. "Then we simply said goodbye to each other and she went on," he concluded.

 _That was one way to make sure even a rock melts. Have to give it to her, though she seemed the least capable to pull something like this off from what I've seen._ "Ash. First of all, good job, at least you didn't mess this up. As for what I think of it..." Cilan thought about going for his usual dramatic flair, but realised who he was talking to and decided to be blunt. "She wanted to tell you that she loved you and wanted to be your girlfriend."

Ash's eyes widened. "Really, does the kiss mean THAT?" He thought back to everything Cilan had explained till now. "Does that mean every girl wants to be my girlfriend?"

"Honestly, sometimes it really seems so," Cilan muttered.

"So, what should I do now?" Ash asked. Should I call all of them and tell that it's fine with me as long as they're happy with it?"

Cilan shook his head patiently. _I never realised it was this bad. He doesn't know what exactly a girlfriend is! How could someone like that even exist?_ "No Ash, you should definitely not do that." Cilan thought for a moment. "Ash, I think you feel that Pikachu is special even if you have so many pokémon, right?" Ash nodded, finally getting some explanation.

"It's somewhat like that. When someone kisses you, it is to tell you that she loves you in that special kind of way. It's like you are more important to her than any other person and she always wants to stay with you... And she feels romantically attracted to you."

"…romantically attracted?"

After an hour of an exhausting conversation, Ash had a gist of what 'attraction' meant. Some of what Cilan had said about it had reminded Ash about that one time he had felt something similar. It was during his first few weeks of travel when he saw that girl from the trainer's school. Giselle, wasn't it? Cilan had been pleasantly surprised Ash was capable of feeling this at ten but had still never made any progress romantically, but Ash explained that he simply wasn't focused enough on his pokémon back then.

 _This is hard... I certainly did feel kind of like that when Serena kissed me, but never before that with her. Still, I had that feeling when Melody and Bianca kissed my cheek too. Or was it Latias? But even when I thought Serena was cute or that short hairstyle suited her, I never really felt how Cilan explained. Does this mean I should tell her no? But I don't want her to be sad! Though I've never felt the same way for May or Dawn, I also thought about their looks sometimes. I still miss them as much as her. As for_ _Misty... I have felt that way sometimes, perhaps._ Ash shrugged mentally. _I don't really know, but I'll have to find the answers, as Serena would most likely want one or she won't feel good._

Ash was feeling at his wit's end. Did he want to be Serena's boyfriend? Even if he liked his other female friends as much, Serena was the only one who had asked in a way he'd understand. If he said yes, she'll be happy and the others won't be able to complain. As for him... Well, he will try to figure out his feelings, but till then, it would just be a new experience. Even if he doesn't like it, he could endure it for Serena just as he survived shopping with the girls. As long as she's happy. But will the others be fine?

Ash simply had to know. His friends were very important to him and he couldn't risk his friendships just for some complicated 'upgrades.' So, he decided to call Iris and try to find out more before finally taking the plunge with Serena.

"Hello from the Opelucid City gym, how can we help you?" A young blunette answered on the opposite end. "Can you put me through to Iris? Tell her it's Ash."

Recognising the speaker, the woman sent a runner inside the gym building. "You called at a great time Ash. Iris has just finished her lessons. I think she'll welcome your call right now. If I say so myself, all of us gym assistants were very impressed by both your dragons in the league. You've raised them well."

"Thanks! It means a lot coming from Drayden's gym."

"You're welcome. Iris will be here in a few minutes." A few moments later, a short girl with bushy purple hair could be seen elegantly walking towards the screen. "Hey Ash! It's been a long time! The last time you called was after your eighth badge. Congrats by the way. You really showed 'em in the league."

"Are you praising me?" Ash feigned surprise.

"Yes duh, but you're still just a little kid." She smiled to take the sting out of her usual jibe. Ash shook her head. "You'll never let this up, won't you?"

"Nope!" She grinned. "Someone needs to keep you from growing a big head." _Besides, you're the only one who I'm sure won't mind however I treat you, so why do you expect me to let up?_ "Go figure." Ash sighed.

"By the way, what were you thinking sending your Noivern against that Weavile? How many times do you need me to tell you that dragons don't like ice? Ever heard of type disadvantage?"

Only _you, Iris_. "Hey, what else could I do?" Ash retorted. He had some great friends, but only Misty, Brock, Iris, Cilan and Clemont could discuss battling with him as equals. Out of them, he enjoyed Clemont and Iris' the most, due to their passion for battling which rivalled his. "Weavile are really fast and physical, and Pikachu was tired. I didn't want to send Greninja in so soon, and Hawlucha and Goodra were also at a disadvantage."

"But you had a Talonflame too! You could have sent it instead." Iris argued.

"Why didn't I think of that before..." Ash recalled. "No wait. She was supposed to be backup for Greninja against Charizard."

"Huh. That Charizard WAS really strong. And it was a dragon! I told you so. Charizards are dragons. You have one but you still can't see it like me! Even if I tell you and Cilan, you don't listen!"

"He was one only when he mega-evolved. You still are wrong," Ash defended.

"Doesn't matter. Charizards are dragons!" She replied stubbornly. "I'm so going to get one somehow. Clair said she can ask someone. But you just lied! You didn't plan on using Talonflame as backup, otherwise you'd have used someone else against that Unfezant."

Ash shrugged. "Not really. Hawlucha, and Noivern were already down by then. Goodra couldn't have fought it... I didn't expect the Bisharp to do so much damage. There wasn't much choice by that point."

"It was the final, and you didn't even know about your opponent's Pokémon! Such a kid!"

"No, let me guess. You watched only my matches, didn't you?" Barely looking to notice Iris nod, he pressed. "My opponent didn't use any Pokémon in the league other than his Charizard till the final. THAT was how strong his Charizard was. I needed to have a plan for him, which didn't work out in the end. By the way, if you had seen the other matches, you'd have known that even Sceptile and Ampharos become dragons after going mega."

Iris' eyes went wide. "What! Even Ampharos?"

"So, where's your 6th sense now?" Ash teased. "I bet you didn't think they are dragons too."

"No way! You're just trying to get back at me." Iris said.

"Don't believe me? Check the highlights whenever you get time. Enough about me... How's it going at the gym? Made any friends yet?"

"Yeah, surprisingly. I didn't get along well with anyone from the academy, but after traveling with you guys I somehow was able to get along better with them! Though they did tell me that they used to find my acting all wild and 'immature' annoying, and I had to promise I'll try to behave to the whole bunch! Then they accepted me."

Ash was surprised at her frankness, and not to mention humbled as he knew how hard it was for her to trust someone enough to reveal such facts. Picturing Iris apologising to her former classmates and co-gym assistants, he chuckled nervously. "And you didn't mind?"

"Well..." She blushed. "When I first came here, they snubbed me, and called me a kid when I tried to talk to them about how I followed Rayquaza. It was then I realised how childish it seemed to them. When they didn't believe me, it reminded me of how I didn't believe you on anything you said when we just began traveling. Then I remembered how you put up with me all along, and since I can no longer picture myself being alone after being near people for so long, I thought it wouldn't hurt to just walk up to them and ask what's wrong with me. Then I promised I'll be better, and everything was fine in the end." Iris' face grew red at this admission, and even Ash was taken aback.

"Iris," he said seriously, gazing into her eyes, "You were really brave out there. I'm really happy for you." The blush in Iris's cheeks grew. "Had any gym battles yet?" He added, changing a subject which had made his friend somewhat uncomfortable.

"No, it hasn't been that long since I've been here," Iris recovered. "But Drayden says I'll get to battle the odd challenger once I manage to fully understand Dragonite and get Gible and Axew to evolve!" Iris explained enthusiastically.

"Hmm... I remember you did say about a Gible. Can I call you sometime later? I'd like mine to meet yours. By the way, where's Axew?"

"Sure, and he's at the Pokémon centre. He had to train a lot today."

 _Okay. Time to get to business_. "Hey Iris," Ash said nervously, "can I ask you something? If you don't mind, that is."

Iris was slightly surprised by his sudden change of demeanour. _Whatever it is, it seems important to him_. "It's okay Ash. What's it?"

"Erm... Suppose there is a girl who has told me that she likes me and wants to be my girlfriend," Ash said nervously. Iris was taken aback and started experiencing a mix of emotions, though she couldn't even think of why. "And... If one of my other friends is right then a lot of girls that I've travelled with before feel the same about me b-but they didn't ask me like she did, and I don't really understand such complicated stuff unless someone tells me straight up so I didn't realise back then... but I don't want anyone to be upset and I don't want to lose my friends because they matter to me, but I don't want her to be unhappy either," Ash was practically rambling at the moment, while Iris had gone dead quiet. "What should I do? Will everyone be okay? Will they still be friends? Will things-"

"Who?" Iris asked softly. Ash noticed her for the first time since he had started, and was surprised to see her looking at him blankly.

"Um. Serena."

"The one from Kalos?"

"Yeah the same."

Iris' heart sank, and she started feeling angry? _Jealous? But why should I feel so?_ "What do you want Ash?" She asked. Seeing the confused look on his face, she sighed and tried to iron out the irrational fears from her brain. "Do you like her?"

"Yeah, but-"

"Then you should accept." Iris bowed her head down slightly, a subtle gesture which was caught by Ash. _She's sad, and I've not even said yes to Serena._

"But how will the others who wanted it feel? I think they won't like it." He quickly looked up to see Iris nodding. "So, will I lose my friends? I like them all as much as Serena! Does someone have to be sad anyway?"

Iris noted the genuine concern in Ash's voice and sighed. Deciding to address his concerns, she said, "I think if the others are really your friends, then they only want the best for you. They'll be sad alright. But they'll recover and will stay your friends. Alright?" Iris took a sharp breath when she realised that her answer was basically based on what she was trying to do at present. _Does this mean...? Nope! He's just a little kid! And out of bounds now!_

Having been warned by Cilan, Ash had observed Iris closely throughout. _She does like me. But if she says it's alright..._ "Hey Iris?"

"Yeah?" Iris looked up and was surprised when Ash's eyes caught hers. She was thrilled by the warmth radiated from them.

"You know what? I do like Serena. But I like you, Misty, May and Dawn as much as her. I don't really know what 'love' means and what Serena wants from me, but I'll accept her because she asked. Hopefully I can keep her happy till I figure out my feelings."

Iris' eyes widened at what he said, though a part of her simply felt relieved. She exclaimed. "You are such a KID Ash! Are you mad?"

"Hey! Why do you think so? I only want to keep my friends happy!" Ash said heatedly.

"You ARE a kid. I don't know much about these things, but what if you become Serena's boyfriend now and later understand that you don't have feelings for her? What if you find someone you really love?"

"I'll figure it out when that happens. it's not like it has till now."

"Obviously. But when it does, won't Serena feel even more sad when you tell her that? Don't make a promise unless you're sure you can keep it!" Iris seethed at the immaturity of her friend.

"Oh. So, someone will be sad however hard I try," Ash muttured, sighing dejectedly. "Man, how much damage can a kiss cause! It's not as if I can ignore it. I'll have to answer her." Ash clenched his fists tightly.

Iris was surprised yet again. "You... kissed her?"

"Actually, she did to tell me what she wanted. So, will it be alright if I tell her that I cannot figure out my feelings yet and want some time?" Ash asked. _Stalling will give me some time, at least. Man, this is so complicated._ Iris visibly composed herself for a moment, then said, "you know what Ash? You should figure out your feelings first. I promise you, whatever happens, I'll always stay your friend. Nothing can change the fact that you were kind to me when I was all alone, isn't it? Even though you are just a little kid." She smiled weakly. _And I have to figure out my feelings soon too._

Ash returned the smile gratefully. "Thank you, Iris. I promise you'll always be one of my best friends too. Bye!"

After completing the call, Ash was left to contemplate his next step. _This keeps getting harder. What should I do now?_ He lowered his head into his palms dejectedly. _I need some time before I answer Serena, but like Cilan said, I need to call her today. Jeez!_

 **So ...**

 **1) I really don't know a thing about romance. Please tell me if my treatment of this was realistic. If I need some feedback desperately, it is here.**

 **2) I couldn't figure out how to write Cilan. I hope he was at least somewhat in character. I really can't figure out how to write his dialogues, and I don't wanna watch Best Wishes again! Did he turn out okay? Did he SEEM like Cilan, at least?**

 **3) Sorry AmourShippers for not having Ash suddenly discover 'weird sensations in his heart' or something for Serena. I'm not saying it can't happen. I really like her and her gentle yet passionate love for Ash, BUT I think he is not ready to love her back yet. On that note, here's a question. What should Ash do? Should he accept Serena, turn her down or stall? All three have potential, story wise.**

Edit- **1/Harem? NOT HAPPENING. UNREALISTIC.**

 **2/Shipping won't be the focus of the story. Promise. I just thought it would be a good idea to have Ash react to you know what.**

 **Thanks for reading! Please review.**


	3. 2

_CHAPTER 2_

"Ash! I've gotten the breakfast ready. C'mon, wake up already!"

Hearing no response from the bedroom, Delia climbed up the stairs to have a look. As expected, Ash was sprawled over his bed with Pikachu snoring softly near his pillow. Delia sighed. For a brief moment, she seriously considered letting him sleep as long as he wished. He had requested after all. But what if the boy ran away somewhere else tomorrow? She wanted him to spend some time with her too. Not to mention, this was too good a chance to pass up.

Smirking, Delia called in a sing-song voice, "Mimey! Ash's bedroom needs cleaning!" She laughed heartily as Ash woke up with a start, banging his head with the bedrest and startling Pikachu awake, who fell face-first on the floor. He rushed into the bathroom, closely followed by a low-powered thunderbolt from an irate electric rodent. "C'mon Pikachu, it's okay, don't you want your fries and Ketchup?" There. Just like that, the mollified Pikachu dove into her arms and jumped on her left shoulder.

"Hehehe, you are worse than Ash." She giggled. The food bait always worked on the duo, so she didn't really have to worry about Ash being mad at her. And if it somehow failed, there was always the prospect of meeting his Pokémon at the ranch to cheer him up.

Ash groggily stared in the mirror for a bit, then shook his head and splashed some water over his face. His regular excited demeanour quickly made itself known once he realised that he was, indeed, home... and this meant being able to meet all his Pokémon friends again! "Alright!" He exclaimed, then became wide-eyed as his voice echoed loudly from the walls of his washroom. Chuckling sheepishly, he went through his motions and got himself ready for a new day.

He left his washroom to find a diligent Mimey vacuuming the floor of his room. He smiled at the familiar sight and called out to his mom's _assistant,_ "Hey Mimey! How's everything?"

"Mistermime mime!" The Pokémon waived one webbed palm in acknowledgment and returned to work. _He's certainly one rare Pokémon,_ Ash wondered. How often do you find someone who performs all your household chores for you and manages your garden, just because you offered the pokémon a meal and a nickname once? _As long as I don't have to do the gardening..._

After finishing a fulfilling breakfast and updating mom about his last night's actions (the non-incriminating bits anyway), Ash charged straight to the Oak labs. Delia accompanied him, excited to meet his new Pokémon.

Currently, he was attended by his excited Pokémon and equally psyched Delia, Professor Oak, Gary and Tracey, as he faced a considerably large clearing some distance away from the Oak labs inside the ranch. He had spotted Swellow early on who had quickly taken over the task of getting the team together. The onlookers watched as the open space filled up while Ash let his friends express their joy as they wished: by tackling, biting, using flamethrower... After having exchanged pleasantries with everyone, Ash turned towards the humans and let out Talonflame, Hawlucha and Noivern.

"Hey guys! This is my mom, professor Oak, Tracey and Gary." The Pokémon were no strangers to the new faces except Gary's, having all experienced at least one conversation on the video phones. The three new pokémon exchanged greetings with the humans. Hawlucha began posing for Tracey, whose sketchbook was out and face poised in concentration, which earned a chuckle from Delia and a fond smile from the professor. Meanwhile, Talonflame and Noivern, after having greeted all of Ash's pokémon, drifted off towards the other birds.

Ash himself watched the new Pokémon settle down happily and exchanged small talk with his old friends. He was presently seated in the middle of the group. His smaller pokémon had already claimed him for themselves, so he now had Oshawott and Totodile on his shoulders, Gible on his head, bulbasaur in his lap and Snivy, who in a rare and uncharacteristic show of affection, was hugging his chest lightly with her vines. These gestures quite eloquently told Ash just how much he was missed by his Pokémon here. Ash was feeling overwhelmed with emotions, a fact which was noticed by the Oaks, who decided to wait and allow the group to break the ice and cheer up a bit, before reminding Ash to release his two powerhouses from Kalos.

Eventually, Ash walked back towards the humans and caught attention of the group. He signalled all his Pokémon to heed him. "Whoa guys, it's so good to see you. I've missed you guys so much. I've got a lot more stories to tell… but that later. You guys up for training like the old times?" The pokémon all let out their loudest noises yet. _Nothing better to break the ice than full-powered training_. "Then what are you waiting for! Arrange into your sparring triplets and show me what you got. Glalie, Buizel and Oshawott, I choose you! Clear up some space for them. Kay, Oshawott and Glalie, were you able to learn Ice Aqua Jet?"

"Osha." Oshawott patted his scalechop proudly.

"All right! Show me then. Glalie and Buizel, block him with counter shield and try to divert him towards each other!"

Ash went about giving instructions to all his Pokémon in groups of two or three in a similar way as they all showed off their progress from the last year one by one. This had become Ash's thing really: while on his journey, he picked a group of pokémon, got them in top physical form, gave them basic training inside and outside of battling, gave them a family and generally helped them develop a sense of security, confidence and a love for battle and rivalries. Eventually though, he adjudged their journeys complete, and being a believer in the fact that Pokémon were generally happier with others of their kind in a forest, had them lead a relaxed life at the labs. But more importantly, he found them rivals and teachers out of his existing batch of Pokémon, which really pushed them and helped them reach their full potential far better. His successes in the battle Frontier and Sinnoh league, where his old Pokémon had presented a much stronger showing than ever before, were proof enough of this.

As the Oaks finally realised that Ash has completely forgotten about them, Gary exploded. "COME ON ASHY-BOY! RELEASE GRENINJA ALREADY!"

Ash turned from applauding his pokémon to look towards the Oaks, his mood slightly dampened. "Oh, him? He's not with me."

Professor Oak paled. "Please don't say you released him Ash."

"Nah, he's just sorting out some weird stuff which happened after that Team Flare incident. He'll return once it's done."

"Oh." The professor relaxed. "So, I'll get to study the bond-phenomenon after all. I promise you young man, I'm gonna lock you in here with him the day he arrives."

"No problem, professor, you can research about it as much as you like. It is so amazing! Greninja becomes so cool when it happens!" Ash gushed.

"Team Flare incident?" Delia questioned, narrowing her eyes. "What does your Pokémon have to do with that? They showed it on TV… you were involved in it, weren't you?"

"No mom, I had nothing to do with it! Greninja is only dealing with some leftovers from that." Ash defended himself. Although he didn't like lying to her mom, he knew that he couldn't let her get a drift of the dangers he routinely got himself into, or else he wouldn't be allowed to travel. Seeing Delia composed for now, the others visibly relaxed.

"And Goodra's with him too?" Gary asked, eager to grasp anything to steer the conversation away from trouble.

"Nah, HIM I released. He now protects his home along with a Florges. He can come to help me out if I ever need it, though," replied Ash.

Gary sighed. "You're the only trainer I know who releases such strong Pokémon."

Ash frowned for a moment, then grinned. "Does it matter? Friends have to leave me all the time to fulfil their dreams. It doesn't bother me much anymore, I'm used to it."

"But Goodra was a Pseudo-legendary!"

"Really? I didn't know that. The pokédex doesn't call it a legendary pokémon," said Ash.

Gary groaned. "A PSEUDO-legendary, idiot!"

"What is a pseudo-legendary?"

Gary face-palmed, while everyone else, human and pokémon, sweat dropped. "A pseudo-legendary, Ashy-boy," he explained in a patronizing tone, "is a pokémon, who is generally considered as strong as a lot of legendary pokémon, and even stronger than some. You really should have known that."

Ash was intrigued. "Eh, no one told me. So, are Charizard and Pikachu pseudo-legendaries too? They've defeated legendaries one-on-one before. And Noivern here was as good as Zapdos, and…"

"No! No Ash, it doesn't work that way. The only pokémon who I've heard called pseudo-legendary are Dragonite, Tyranitar, Salamence, Metagross, Garchomp, Hydreigon and Goodra. Hell, your Charizard can defeat legends? Its special. But if someone's Garchomp does so? Than its pretty normal. So, you see…"

"Really? Awesome! Hey Gible! You'll be a pseudo-legendary when you evolve! So cool!"

"Gible-gible-gib," Gible mumbled in a low voice.

"Oh, sorry I forgot you don't wanna evolve in all that excitement... Don't worry mate, it's all right with me." Ash went over to console his Pokémon. "I know you want to stay small, just like Pikachu, and it's all right. You've already perfected Draco meteor, the strongest dragon type move! I bet you can defeat a legendary Pokémon too." Soothed, Gible jumped and bit Ash's head affectionately. "Ow, gerroff! Oh, I have an idea… hey, why don't you teach Draco meteor to Noivern? I bet he'd like it! Come on, Noivern, pair up with Gible here. He'll show you a really cool move!"

"Noi!" Noivern, who had followed the conversation with interest, now joined Gible, the only other Dragon type with Ash, with barely concealed excitement.

"Hawlucha, I bet Staraptor there will be a great rival for you. Go on, pair up."

"Chalu-ha?" Hawlucha cocked his head, examining his new sparring partner.

"Starrr-staaraptor!" The bird challenged. Liking what he saw, Hawlucha joined him.

"Now Talonflame… would you like to have a race with Swellow? She's my fastest Pokémon here. I bet you'll both enjoy it. Go! Rest of you, arrange into your sparring groups and get moving! I'm gonna check on all of you."

"And we've lost him yet again," noted a bemused Professor Oak to Delia, while Gary mused, "he's one unusual trainer, Ash is. I'd have given anything to have a Garchomp of my own, and here he is, letting his Gible be? Hmm..."

"It's somewhat strange though. Ash has travelled so much, seen so many things and fought so many battles, yet he doesn't know about pseudo-legendaries?" Wondered Tracey, who wasn't really interested in breaking into yet another debate on Ash and his tolerance towards his Pokémon who chose not to evolve.

"It's him… there are a lot of things he doesn't know, and even more things he doesn't understand. Still, he manages to be better than most people through sheer determination, the bond between him and his Pokémon and, of course, his strange battle tactics," observed professor Oak. _Though it is another of my failures he doesn't know such things. Most successful trainers have had a mentor figure to teach them the basics of training and battling, and to help with dealing with stubborn Pokémon. Given how his dad was, I really should have paid more attention to him._ Oak sighed rather heavily, but wasn't noticed. _He is the only trainer I know who has managed to come so far completely on his own._ Eventually, Ash was left to train with his Pokémon. Delia went to cook lunch for the everyone while Tracey began finishing his sketch of Hawlucha from memory. Gary, however, followed Samuel back to the lab. "Why doesn't Ash know these facts, eh gramps?"

Oak sighed. "Think about it son. I suspect you already know."

Gary thought for a moment. "It's obvious isn't it? I was taught the basics by pa and you. He didn't really have anyone..." Gary noted his grandfather flinch ever so slightly, and finally figured out what was bothering him. "But I think it's his fault too. Even if he didn't know the basics at ten doesn't mean he should not have picked them on the road, eh?"

"Gary... there are some facts everyone assumes a traveling trainer knows. These things might not have come into conversation, or any number of reasons are possible... see, he has faced a lot of Metagross in his career for example, so he knows that they are strong, and he knows he can defeat them. He just doesn't know the technical terms, is all."

"It's fine, I guess," Gary noted. "At least he has finally _started_ seeking out pseudo-legendaries, even if it has only taken him six years." The professor simply snorted. "What?"

"You won't believe it," Oak replied, "but Goomy actually fell from the sky. Literally."

" _What!?"_

"Yes. His home was torn in battle, and he fell from a Swanna's back on top of Ash's head." Oak chuckled, good humour somewhat restored.

"What."

Gary stared blankly as his grandfather gave no indication of this being a joke. After several minutes, he sighed. "So, he simply got lucky in catching his second pseudo-legendary? Even his special Greninja was a stroke of luck, right?" He shook his head and went on a full-on rant. "Man, he has travelled so much and he still keeps on battling Hydreigons and Tyranitars with Snivys and Pikachus! We really need to make him sit patiently for a bit and explain to him why some Pokémon are much stronger than others and why he should start seeking them for his team! How else does he expect to win a league?" His fists clenched. "It's so frustrating! Here's my best friend and rival, a trainer so strong he can defeat a bloody Pyramid king with a team of Pikachu, Bulbasaur, Squirtle and Charizard, where Charizard doesn't even get a single KO! And he is wasting himself! How well would he fight with a proper team? A Lucario? A Gallade? What-"

"Enough Gary!" Oak snapped, though he could sympathise with him. It was never a great experience to find a rival who beated you, bested you and earned your respect only to turn out to be just another trainer. And they both knew what Ash was capable of. Even if he didn't try to catch a pseudo-legendary, he could still reach exceptional heights with relatively common Pokémon like Gallade, Lucario, Weavile... There really were a lot of strong choices which suited Ash. "Compose yourself, we're going to Delia's house for lunch."

Ash enjoyed his lunch even more than his breakfast on account of having exhausted himself during training. Professor Oak had been mollified somewhat from talking to Gary, as he found being able to shift some of the blame to Ash oddly comforting. Gary was subdued initially, but being able to enjoy Delia's cooking after living so long by his own in remote forests of Sinnoh restored his good mood. Tracey had noticed Gary's agitation earlier but thought it better to let it be. Delia, as ever, was a cheerful hostess, though a lot of it had to do with Ash being there and happy.

"So, what do you plan next?" Tracey asked Ash eventually, ending a brief period of comfortable silence, as Mimey cleared the empty plates off the table.

"Not thought of anything yet, though I think I'll stay here at least for a few weeks this time. What about you, Gary?"

Ash asked. He failed to notice the professor's facial lines smoothen over his simple proclamation. Gears began turning in Oak's head as he started planning how to make use of this time.

"Me? My leave from work has been spent here, so I've gotta return to professor Rowan's lab day after. Then perhaps I'd head back to mount Coronet," Gary informed. "On that note Ash, I was thinking... seeing as you are going to stay here for a while, can you help me out with my research a bit?"

"Sure. What do I have to do?"

"Oh, nothing much." Gary looked away sheepishly. The Pokémon professor arched an eyebrow at him, and he shrugged slightly. "You see, there are some Pokémon I want to research for my first independent project, but they are really rare in Sinnoh... especially where I work. Wherever you go next, can you catch as many of them as you can find for me? I'll be in the lookout in Sinnoh too, of course." Gary handed Ash a small piece of paper.

Ash unfolded the paper and looked. _Gallade, Lucario, Weavile, Bisharp, Scizor, Haxorus, Flygon, Lopunny, Espeon, Luxray_

"Hmm... these are some cool Pokémon you've listed. What do you want to research about?" Ash asked while handing over the list to professor Oak, who wanted to analyze it as well.

"Hmm..." Oak observed, "there seems to be something common about all of them..." He cast a sideways glance towards Gary, having guessed a likely reason for him to turn up with such a list and ask Ash of all people.

"Yeah gramps. They are some fast attacking pokémon right here. Ash I want the fastest ones you can find. Whenever you catch one, just call gramps, right? Ya see, I'm gonna research why these Pokémon aren't really common in the wild, despite being fast enough to avoid all danger and strong enough to fight."

Professor Oak's eyes twinkled in amusement. _Oh, I see. Since Ash is not going to seek suitable Pokémon for himself, Gary is making him seek them anyway. Devious. He might find at least one or two of them even if he doesn't really go all out to find them, which I guess he won't. How will Gary convince him to keep them then is another matter entirely._ "Okay I'll remember when I move on," Ash assured, "though I'll be training here for a bit. Okay with you professor?"

"In fact, it would be ideal Ash. Though your Pokémon except Pikachu don't want to keep traveling like you do, they really like training and battling with you. Although Tracey and Bulbasaur have carried all your training instructions well with the bunch, having you around will be good for their morale as well." Added professor Oak. "I think you now have multiple teams which can take on most challenges. You only need to train them to their maximum. I think you can win the next league you enter if you do so."

"Really?"

"Yep," replied Tracey. "I was just telling Gary yesterday. I think you'd have won this year if you had a mega-evolution with you."

"Oh, that reminds me, did you find any mega stones on your journey?" Asked the professor, borrowing a leaf from his grandson's book. "I've read professor Sycamore's research papers, but I'd honestly like to see some first hand."

"Um, I didn't find them, but I _did_ ask Sawyer where he got his Sceptilite and also Trevor about his Charizardite-Y... They both found them deep inside caves near Shalour city, but Trevor said Steven Stone has tracked most of the mega stones from there down. He also said that Steven was planning to let the mega stones of a specie be guarded by large colonies of that specie... so most likely Sceptilite is now somewhere in Hoenn, and Charizardite-Y is surely at the Charicific Valley: I've asked Liza."

Gary was impressed by this piece of information. "Cool huh? Steven Stone really has the right idea... so is finding a mega stone going to be some kind of trial so that only Pokémon with strong bonds with their trainers get them?"

"Knowing Steven, I think that is most likely what he is after," confirmed Samuel. "I know Charmander are bred in Charicific Valley so that one is obvious. You remember any more Pokémon settlements Ash? Gary?"

"Hmm... I remember we travelled to that place where Mudkip were bred in Hoenn, and another place where I caught my Sceptile. Wonder if they sent the sceptilites there? As for Mareep, I remember we met a guy who raised a here of them in Johto, but I guess there might be a lot of such settlements for them at least. There is that island where those Wortortles lived, and the Lucario Kingdom too..." Ash reminisced.

Gary added his two cents. "I think Lavender Tower is as good a place as any for a gengarite... Glalite has to be somewhere snowy so that by itself narrows down the options... now I remember the Abra colony where I got mine from..."

"Won't it be better if we just call? Have you got his number professor?" Asked Tracey.

"I have. You know, I can ask him, it seems like something a Pokémon professor should be aware of." Professor Oak stated. "I think I'll now return to the lab. I'll place a call to him immediately."

"Hey Ash, you seem sure of there being a charizardite-Y at the valley... fancy giving it a go? Bet Charizard will like it," Tracey said. "You're not doing much right now anyway."

"Huh," Ash groaned, "I can't believe I didn't think of that. But it will be a long journey... will take at least a week or two to reach the valley if I remember right."

"Do you remember that you have at least three flying types who can easily give you a lift, eh Ash?" Gary reminded him.

"Yeah, I guess. Though I've never really flown that far with any one of them," Ash observed. Tracey chuckled and Gary felt like smacking him in the head.

"Ash," he said in a dangerously calm voice, "You catch a different flying-type in every region. Flying types are meant to fly... why do you _not_ use them to fly wherever you need to? What's so hard to understand about this! You FLY on flying types! And here you are talking about going by FOOT to Johto! Have you got a brain inside your skull!?" Ash had, admittedly, got enough on Gary's nerves today to warrant having a good shout. His outburst caught Delia, Tracey and Ash by surprise though, and none of them had any idea of how to reply.

Thankfully for Gary, Delia interrupted the awkward silence and said, "you know Ash, he's right. You should train how to fly with your Pokémon white you are here. It can be useful in situations like these, isn't it?"

"And you can use them to escape if you have any dangers on your journey," Tracey added with a knowing look, which caused Delia to narrow her eyes. "Tracey, do you think Ash gets in such situations?"

Tracey paled. "No, no! I didn't mean it that way, but it is an important skill, isn't it? You never know what might happen right?"

Ash figured this was as good as anything else he could have done with his time at Pallet. Come to think of it, learning to fly with Noivern, Charizard, Staraptor and Talonflame sounded like fun! He could definitely do it! And he might be able to get a lot of new mega stones if he managed it! "Hey thanks Gary. I think this will be awesome! So, I'll just have to fit a schedule to learn flying too. Will the professor be able to help?"

Gary rolled his eyes. "He does have his own Charizard and Dragonite, doesn't he, eh Ashy-Boy? It was he who taught me how to. Though I admit I don't fly around much... I generally prefer riding my Arcanine. That said, you go ask him."

"Hey, I've ridden Arcanine before! It's really cool, isn't it? How fast can your Arcanine go? And for how long?" Ash asked with sparking eyes, as he remembered his experiences with riding one.

"You should've caught one for yourself if you enjoyed it that much. No, scratch that, you have enough fire types already," Gary snorted. "Arcanine can go at insane speeds when he's using extremespeed, and he can sustain it easily for an hour or two, you know," he explained with more than a touch of pride. "I bet he can run from here to Sinnoh within a day... You know what? I want to see a Pokémon mega evolve in front of my eyes badly enough I'm ready to give you a lift on him if you want."

"Really?"

"Yep, dead serious. In fact, I have to return the day after isn't it? Delia, if its fine with you, we're leaving in two hours. We'll easily reach there before sunset," Gary said with a surprising amount of authority in his voice. "We'll be back by tomorrow. What do you say?" Seeing Delia nod her acceptance, Gary stood up. "I'm gonna ask Gramps right now. Get ready and meet at the ranch by 3:45 Ash. We'll leave at 4." He quickly exited the house, beckoning Tracey to follow.

"Man, Gary sure has changed," Ash breathed out. Delia quickly busied herself to prepare some dinner for the two boys, with what she had heard, the two would most likely be staying at the valley for the night. Not that she minded. Her son was big enough to mind himself out there. And they would be returning tomorrow.

Ash quickly set off his chair and shot upstairs to pack some stuff. He didn't need to pack heavily, but figured it would be a good idea to have some potions, given that they were most likely going to face a trial. Having done that, he made a quick call to May's house in Petalburg city, hoping that Max still had the map in which he had marked the places where all the Pokémon he had made friends with last lived, and other key locations (such that the Treecko settlement hopefully).

The phone was picked on the other end by a decently tall boy with short black hair, who had worn a dark blue t-shirt and brown rectangular-frame glasses. Ash wouldn't have recognised him at all had he not stayed in touch occasionally. "Hey Max! How's it going?"

"Ash. Yeah, I'm all right. We're going to the Wallace cup in an hour, so we're in bit of a hurry. What's up?" Max responded a bit briskly. _They really seem to be in a hurry._

"Oh, it's summer already? Where's it this time? And is May participating?"

"Lilicove city and yes. Dawn is coming too. And Drew, Harley and Solidad are as well. It is-" Max was interrupted by the sound of a bell ringing. Caroline's voice could be vaguely heard over the line.

"Just a sec mom! Wait for a bit Ash, someone's at the door." Max explained and bolted towards the door.

A few moments later though, Max reappeared. "Ash, do you know someone by the name of Serena? Someone-"

"Yeah I sent her here. You've met her once on the video phone, remember? She is going to attempt Pokémon contests this year in Hoenn, so I had just sent her a message yesterday to meet up with you. I was hoping you could help her out a bit..."

Max didn't wait to answer him and simply ran back towards the door. He quickly returned with a pretty girl with blond hair. Serena was still in the same outfit which she had worn through most of Kalos, and was certainly not expecting to see Ash on the other end of the line. She blushed furiously but didn't look away, which Max noticed and snickered silently, drifting a few steps back.

"Hey Serena," Ash greeted. "Max! Do you still have _that_ map?" He added to bring the boy back into focus. He was pretty sure Max would understand what Ash was hinting at.

"Yeah... why? You needed something?"

"Yeah... can you find and tell me where I caught my Sceptile? I remember you wanted to catch your own Treecko... so did you mark that place?"

Max was already running towards his room in a hurry. Serena sighed. "Hey Ash. They seem to be going somewhere... so mind telling me what's going on?"

"Um... Max is going to begin his Pokémon journey in a month and I was hoping you could talk to him about the routes and stuff. He travelled with me like Bonnie two years ago so he knows a lot about the region. Plus, his elder sister is a really great co-ordinator... Anyway, they are going to Lilicove city for a really big contest called Wallace cup. Will it be fine with you if you go there with them? You will be able to learn a lot about contests from it, and hopefully get new friends..."

"Will they be okay with it?" Serena asked doubtfully, to which Ash replied with confidence, "I'm sure they'll be fine. You just have to ask. Even if they refuse, I think you should go there anyway, it will be a great experience for you."

"Um, okay I guess..." Serena twiddled her thumbs nervously. Ash figured now was as good a time as any.

"Hey Serena," he said urgently, expecting Max to turn up any second now, "you know, I don't really know what I feel about what happened _then,_ but I think I'm not ready yet for what you want. It could still happen, but can we just stay good friends till then?"

Serena looked slightly crestfallen. "Well, I had a feeling this was coming," she said softly, "but yeah, I'm always going to be your friend no matter what," she finished hesitantly.

"Hey you know, I'm not saying it couldn't happen. But I need time, okay? And yes, I'm going to stay home for a few weeks, so I want you to call whenever you are able to. Deal?"

Serena nodded and opened her mouth, but Max reappeared before she could say anything. "Hey, found it. It's just in the forest near Petalburg, in fact."

"Thanks Max. Do you guys mind if Serena comes with you to see the Wallace cup?"

"Sure, no problem. Your friend is our friend, Ash. With how well May gets along with Dawn nowadays, I bet she'll make friends with her too. I already asked mom and she's fine with it. Okay was there anything else?"

"No thanks. I'll call at a better time then. Enjoy and send my all the best to both May and Dawn!"

"You're on. Nice seeing you Ash. Let's talk from Lilicove, okay? I'm going to get bored there anyway."

"Okay, but I'm going to be kinda busy today and tomorrow. We'll stay in touch after. Okay then! Bye Max and Serena! Enjoy yourselves!"

"Will do. You too." The said, Max hung up. _Whew, that was fast._ Max had really grown over the last year. As for Serena... he had realised before falling asleep yesterday night (today morning?) that he couldn't really have avoided it, but she'll be okay. She was her own person with her own goal, new places to see, new Pokémon to catch, a new type of competition to participate in... There would be a lot to take her mind of this little issue. It's not as if he had completely denied her what she wanted anyway. This, he decided, was the best-case scenario, all things considered.

With this sorted out, he set off to the lab with his backpack and a sleeping Pikachu held in his arms. Now he just had to pick up Charizard and Sceptile... might as well take a full team. Pikachu was a given...

 **Author's note:**

 **Well... I'm reasonably satisfied with this chapter. Inside Gary's list is basically a shortlist out of which I'll have Ash catch one or two Pokémon. Do you want to add something to it? Will you like to choose one(two) of your favourite options? I'm open to suggestions... There are glaring Steel, Fairy, Psychic and Ghost-shaped holes in Ash's team, remember, though Pikachu and Decidueye would most likely fill the latter two.**

 **So ... There is a bit of original content planned before the Alola arc finally begins. Till that happens, Wallace cup will have happened and Ash would have probably gotten himself at least a mega stone. I thought being surrounded by Mega-evolution in Kalos and still not trying to get one freaking mega stone for himself was just dumb. Okay he had that badass Greninja, but with him gone any practical and continuous version of Ash would have tried to find some mega stones in my opinion.**

 **Sort of (re)introduction for Max and Serena. How did I handle it? Thanks for reading. Please review:)**


	4. 3

_CHAPTER 3_

Having called his team and roused Pikachu, Ash was now waiting for Gary to appear with his Arcanine. Pikachu and Noivern were animatedly explaining all they knew about Mega-evolution to Charizard, Sceptile, Heracross and Glalie. Charizard was all but drooling; he _had_ seen the Kalos league after all. Even the others seemed interested. Ash chuckled as Gary appeared.

"Wow. Some team you are taking," commented Gary in an offhand manner.

"Yeah, I figured Heracross and Glalie would like to look as well, they can go mega too," Ash explained. "I would have taken Bulbasaur or Gible... but you know. So, I guess Noivern gets another outing."

Gary scoffed. "Fine. Recall them quick. Let's not waste daylight, alright?"

Ash recalled five Pokémon while Pikachu hopped on his shoulder. "You know where the valley is?"

"Yeah gramps gave me directions. It is near Violet city so I think it'll take us at most an hour. Pikachu will you be fine on Arcanine?" Gary directed his question to the electric mouse Pokémon.

"Pi-pikachu Pikapi," _yeah, I'm better at it than Ash._

"Hey!" Ash laughed. Gary didn't mind asking and released the beast of fire.

Gary's Arcanine was a majestic specimen. His golden-orange mane was lustrous in the sunshine, and his gait was the epitome of elegance, strength and pride. His size was sufficient to carry both the boys, which pinned him as a relatively young Arcanine. He barked once in greeting to Ash and Pikachu and sat down on his haunches. Ash followed Gary's lead and boarded his ride, who, after making sure his passengers were comfortable, accelerated to a canter.

Ash was awed by Gary's command of the Arcanine. Gary was making him alternate between extremespeed and slow jog at regular intervals to minimise his energy consumption and to keep him from over-exerting himself, but he was still averaging a pretty good speed. The duo had passed the Tohjo falls and entered Johto even before the twenty-minute mark. Pikachu was clinging to Ash's shoulder with commendable strength but seemed to be enjoying himself thoroughly throughout.

The two humans and Pokémon eventually left their mount to enter the Violet city Pokémon centre, where they booked a room for the night and restored Arcanine. Having accomplished as much, Ash informed Liza of their arrival and asked permission for Gary to accompany him. This done, he called out Charizard and instructed him to lead Arcanine to the valley.

A few minutes later, the small entourage was staring at a pair of huge metal doors framed by a large cliff. The doors faced some almost natural looking step formations, which ultimately descended to a lake. The entire area was surrounded by rocks such that there was only one passage for leaving it. The large rock wall which marked the boundary of the valley had a large statue of a Charizard's head made of the same material. These all factors combined to give the valley a somewhat intimidating appearance.

Charizard observed the entrance with a slight smile; it was like a second home to him and he was eager to meet his second family. However, nothing could distract him from his reason to be here today: this was another chance for him to prove his mettle and to ascend to an even higher level. There was no roar from him today, and he didn't even feel the urge to shoot a flamethrower to the sky, for he knew that despite having completed his training, he was not as strong as the strongest Charizards living past the valley's doors. This was, after all, the place which had taught him the value of humility in addition to helping him gain strength and a feeling of self-worth, which did not border on arrogance anymore.

On the other hand, Gary, Ash and Pikachu marvelled at the scenes of majesty in front of their eyes. All of them could have counted their past visits here on their fingers, and the beauty of the valley enchanted them every time they approached the gates.

Ash recovered the first and banged the door loudly. The door opened to reveal a woman in her mid-twenties standing with a Charizard alongside. The woman had bushy, dark green hair tied in a ponytail, and her maroon attire was like that of a ringmaster. She was casually leaning on a cane to her right. Her Charizard was wearing a pink bow on her head. As soon as the door opened, the Charizard flew over to Ash's Charizard and nuzzled him gently.

"How long were you people planning on standing on the other side huh?" Liza asked cheekily. "It was looking like you were going to chicken out of this trial."

"Hey it's nothing like that!" Ash exclaimed. "How did you- no wait, you are able to identify a Charizard's smell. How's everything with you and Charla?"

"Huh. One point to you for remembering. Everything is fine here. The Charizards in here are really happy with this new development you see, as they get quite a sport out of people attempting to find a mega stone. We have not had a lot of challengers till now though." Liza explained.

"I gotcha," Ash said, "a lot of people still don't know about mega-evolution isn't it?"

"What's up with these two?" Gary asked the two people after spending some minutes gawking at the two beasts. "I didn't know your Charizard was capable of this Ash," he added, bewildered, pointing towards the fire types.

"They are mates," Liza explained simply. Gary shook his head.

"So which mega stone is kept here and what is the challenge?" Ash enquired Liza, who beckoned the party to follow her inside. This caught the attention of Gary and the two Charizards, who listened attentively.

"You see, Steven Stone sends me both types of charizardites and it is up to me to design the challenge," Liza explained. "So then... The challenge is simple. You have to fly with your Charizard and search the valley for the place where we keep the stones and retrieve one from the pile. That's it."

Charla snorted abruptly, which made it clear that there was more to it than Liza was letting on. "What's the catch?" Gary inquired.

"Oh. You see, when Ash and Charizard are in the air, some of the valley's residents will attack Ash. Charizard will have to protect him and search for the key stones too. The mega stones will be easy enough to find: they all are kept together and every charizardite has a signature which Charizards are able to sense, almost like how they can find another Charizard by smell," Liza described seriously. "So, you will have to trust Charizard with your life to reach the stones Ash. Once you find them, you will have to descend to them. As soon as you reach the ground, the Charizards will cease attacking. But the stones are guarded by the strongest Charizard of the valley, and you will have to get past her defences to pick one mega stone. The trial will be over either when you defeat her, or when you are able to sneak a mega stone from her and mega-evolve your Charizard inside the battle. Understand?"

Ash recalled everything Liza had said while describing the challenge. "Wow. This is one tough trial." He felt his blood pump. "Understood. Alright Charizard, I'm counting on you! We'll watch each other's backs and get a mega stone for you! You with me?"

"Rizaaar!" Charizard gave a throaty bellow. _Hell yeah!_ He thought, _this is my kind of challenge._

"Hey Ash, you've got a key stone, haven't you?" Gary reminded. "I think it will be easier to mega-evolve inside the battle than defeating the guard Charizard...?"

Ash facepalmed. "Oh no. I haven't got a key stone." Charizard and Pikachu looked at their trainer incredulously.

"Not to worry," Liza jumped to his rescue, taking out small crystalline sphere from her pocket. "Here, borrow mine for the trial. If you succeed, I'll give you another; we are well stocked with them as well." Ash pocketed the borrowed key stone, sighing in relief.

"Piika," Pikachu shook his little head sagely.

"Okay. Now, this isn't an official league battle, so you don't have to use only four moves," Liza informed. "You can use as many moves as you require in this trial. Good?"

"Great," Ash said as he retrieved his Unova pokédex from his bag (his Kalos dex having been borrowed by professor Oak) and gave Charizard a quick scan to remind himself of every move he knew. Once he was sure of himself, he returned it and handed the bag over to Gary. "Hey Liza, what about Pikachu? Can he come with me and Charizard?"

"As long as he doesn't interfere," Liza answered while scratching the yellow rodent behind his ears. Gary added, "But won't it be easier for Charizard if he only has to worry about you? You don't know how hard this challenge is, so don't take too many risks Ash."

"Pi-pikapi pikachu!" Pikachu added as he jumped onto Charla's neck in a gesture which made it clear that he was perfectly fine with not being in the firing line for once. Charizard could take care of Ash. He added a thumbs-up for good measure to wish his friends luck.

"Okay then." Ash took a deep breath and released it slowly. "It's all up to you and me Charizard," He said seriously, staring the draconic beast in the eyes. "We've got this. We won't lose."

"Char," Charizard grunted in a low voice. He clasped Ash's right had in his claw briefly, then lowered himself for Ash to climb. Ash climbed up, found a comfortable position and gripped his pokémon by his neck. "We're ready," he informed the valley caretaker.

Satisfied, Liza climbed Charla and signalled Gary and Pikachu to do so as well. Once in position, she whistled deeply. "The valley is ready too. The trial may begin!"

Ash softly whispered in Charizard's ear, "can you try to sense the stones from here?"

"Char," grunted Charizard as he closed his eyes to concentrate. He sensed around a dozen Charizard hovering poised in the shadows of the steep inclines on either sides. On concentrating harder, he sensed something similar but different... something which reminded him of a Charizard, but which his nose could distinguish as a crystal. Opening his eyes, he nodded and beat his wings to hover in the air. He aligned his head towards the direction he assumed the mega stones were in and then gestured to either side with his claws.

"So, they are waiting on either side huh. Hmm... It's like walking into a trap, isn't it?"

Charizard nodded briefly and started flying ahead at a relaxed pace. He knew that had he let him, Ash would have asked to go as fast as he could, but he had an idea. Ash bit his tongue as he figured out that Charizard had a plan.

"Okay let's go."

As Charizard moved forward, no one tried to approach him or attack Ash using flames. Surprised, he kept moving forward cautiously, till a third of the assumed number of Charizard were left behind. Charla hovered with her passengers at a greater height. "Why hasn't anything happened yet?" Gary hissed in Liza's ear, who barely shrugged.

As if someone had pressed a switch, all the Charizards which were ahead quickly pounced on them and the ones behind quickly surrounded them and blocked the way out. "Up!" Ash ordered as Charizard quickly ascended upwards to protect Ash from the slashes and wing attacks of the front ranks of the Charizards. This was an expected outcome however, as flamethrower were shot straight at Ash's back by half of the Charizards behind them while the other half shot below. "Dragon tail!" Ash bellowed after sensing the air behind him go warm, as Charizard bought his tail up and covered it in draconic energy to block the flames shot towards Ash. Seeing the situation under control, Ash turned ahead to notice the rest of the Charizards closing in on them.

"This isn't working Charizard! Dive low quick and move forward as fast as you can!"

Charizard dove as fast as he could towards the ground with Ash hanging on for dear life. He straightened himself near the bottom and began flying at his full speed towards the cache of mega stones. Although this measure had gained them a decent head start over their pursuers, some of the Charizards started closing in bit by bit. Ash's Charizard knew he wasn't the fastest; his niche among his fellows had always been his physical strength, so he had been expecting the pursuers to be faster. He started feinting left and right to shake some of the aggressors off his trail. Occasionally he pulled a complete 360 and shot a flamethrower to block an incoming special attack or to put off the specially attacking Charizards, who had stayed behind and were continuously trying to aim dragon breaths and flamethrowers towards Ash's back.

By this point, Ash was getting dizzy, not to mention frightened. Though he had been in such situations before; the Shamouti incident immediately came to mind, he had never been the only focus of such attacks. The Charizards however were aiming for him and him _alone!_ And his Charizard was facing away from them and couldn't keep protecting him from the attacks which were coming from behind. Looking back once, he noticed a few Charizards nearing him.

"Dragon breath countershield!" He hollered, as Charizard started spinning wildly in the air, sending dragon breath everywhere. This caused the nearby Charizards to get caught and suffer damage while a lot of the special attacks were stopped in their tracts. Having gained some vital moments, Ash ordered a smokescreen and they flew away from the others.

"They are doing well, aren't they?" Liza remarked with a touch of respect. Charla agreed. Gary and Pikachu however were staring down, wide eyed. "Are you trying to _kill him!_ " He hissed sharply in Liza's ear. "This is way too hard! What do you plan to do when someone dies during your trial?" Pikachu himself was ranting loudly at Liza, who was suddenly feeling relieved that she couldn't understand him.

"Don't worry, all of them have good restraint. At worst, the trainer could suffer heavy burns, but those burns are nothing they haven't suffered before if they have formed a bond with their Charizards. Even among fire types, Charizards are renowned for having fiery tempers. Burns should not scare off a Charizard trainer."

"If you say so," Gary muttered worriedly as the view downwards was obscured by a dense layer of smoke. "He seems to be in control of the situation now."

Ash's head was spinning from all the counter-shielding, so he left everything to Charizard from then. The Pokémon started flying through the layer of smoke while emitting new layers straight ahead. He was not foolish enough to follow a straight path however. He corkscrewed and banked, performed elaborate flips and turns, rose and dove randomly and abruptly and generally made himself and Ash very hard targets. Eventually, Ash started coughing and Charizard had to dispel the smoke, which revealed a lot of space between him and his pursuers, who had been outsmarted and wrong-winged at the vital moment. Sensing his chance, he shot towards the cache of stones like a missile, only stopping when a lair came into view. Guarding it was a Charizard which was about one and a half times larger than him and radiated power from every sense of her being. She was poised like a mother standing guard over her eggs.

As the pursuing Charizards finally came near enough to be able to apply some pressure on the duo, Ash softly murmured, "as soon as you land, start roosting till the Charizard realises. Got it?"

"Zard." Charizard landed smoothly, helping his winded trainer to climb down with his claws, and then started using roost. All the other Charizards circled them, with Liza and Charla taking a place right in the front. Liza gave him a furtive glance and swore. _Why did I order to attack only when the opponent tries to get past or attacks her?_

Charizard was allowed to roost to his full health and his opponent looked irritated. Gary, Pikachu and even Ash seemed surprised by this outcome. Choosing not to look a gift horse in its mouth, he began his assault. "Charizard use Flamethrower!"

Charizard's flames were countered by the adversary's flames, which seemed to be even. _So either special attacks are even or she's holding back... no, she's a Charizard. She looks stronger physically... let's not try to engage in a fistfight then._

"Up in the air!" Charizard flew slightly overhead. The opponent simply adjusted her position to cover the stones. _She sure isn't making it easy. "_ Use flamethrower and then wing attack!"

Charizard shot his flames which were again countered, and flew into a wing attack while she was distracted. He attacked with both wings and then grappled her out of instinct. Both the Charizard thereby got engaged in a physical stand-off. Although Ash's Pokémon was doing all right, he was still being overwhelmed. Eventually he was pushed back by the female, who assumed a defensive posture yet again.

Ash had not faced a lot of defensive Pokémon before, and facing a defensive Charizard was the last thing he had expected. "Flamethrower into wing attack and then withdraw!"

Charizard kept at it for a while, making her suffer chip damage which she kept receiving with increasing annoyance. She finally second-guessed and took the flames head on, but caught the wing attack. Having made the opening, she used crunch to bite his neck hard. Charizard let out an annoyed bellow and tried to slash her claw to free his wing, which she allowed. However, she used this moment of distraction to give him a thunder punch with her free arm.

Ash winced. "Liza, how strong is she!" Charizard roared his agreement.

Liza rolled her eyes. "You know Ash, even with all he has experienced, your Charizard is still quite young. She is in the prime of her age, and thus her strength is not too special." She chuckled, then added reassuringly. "If you care for him right and if he keeps training as he should, he will be as strong inside the next twenty years."

Ash's eyes widened. Gary snorted and added, "there's a reason I did not try to raise too many young Pokémon, you know? Pokémon have different life spans to us. Like we are strongest in our twenties, Charizards are in their thirties."

"Oh. And my Charizard was just a Charmander straight from the labs when I caught him," Ash murmured absently, though he realised that this conversation was _not_ going to sit well with his Pokémon. "So what! We are stronger together! Right Charizard? We only need to get a mega stone!"

"RizaaAAR!" With a massive yank of effort, Charizard pulled his neck out of the foe's jaw and withdrew. "Charizard, up in the air and use smokescreen!"

Charizard complied. The guard was surrounded by smoke, which she tried to clear by using air slashes. By the time the smoke disappeared, Charizard had dived towards the stones from the other side. This did not sit well with her. She growled angrily and barrelled into him with a really powerful giga impact. Charizard was flung into the air and thrown back metres apart. Undeterred, Ash yelled, "Roost!"

Charizard began regaining health while the opponent watched with frustration, as she had to recharge herself. By the time she was done, Charizard had recovered quite a lot. She growled in annoyance and tried to loom menacingly over him.

Ash noticed that the last manoeuvre pulled by Charizard had sent him to the opposite side of him and the stones were open for grabs. He was not willing to be noticed by the guard however. "Again!"

Charizard repeated the manoeuvre though the foe second-guessed him again. This time though, she didn't make the mistake of using giga impact and instead went with a flare blitz to push him back towards Ash. Charizard thus wasn't hurt nearly as much, but wasn't allowed to roost as well, as she rebuffed his attempts by using dragon breath. This act of constantly roosting and coming back to simply bother her, coupled with her orders which prevented her from simply beating the crap out of him, had miffed the dragoness quite a bit however.

"Charizard! Mix fire spin into the routine and repeat! And add more smokescreen this time!"

Charizard complied despite not getting what Ash was trying to achieve here. The extra fire spin hindered her vision and fuelled the smokescreen. Thus there was much more smoke to deal with. Charizard got much closer to the lair this time due to the time bought by using fire spin... so close in fact that she had to use giga impact to ward him away. He was pushed to the opposite side of Ash again. The guard was irritated beyond a doubt this time.

Charizard had taken a lot of hits till now, and they had certainly taken a toll. Suddenly, the flames on his tail grew in size and started gaining a bluish tint. _Blaze..._ "Charizard, use overheat!"

The first overheat attack, coupled with a blaze boost, easily pierced the opponent's flamethrower and hurt her more than expected. Ash didn't concentrate on this however; he had slowly started inching towards the exposed lair... "Fire spin and repeat!"

This time there was more fire to douse and even more smoke to clear. Charizard did not try to dive in however, for he had noticed Ash doing the same on the opposite side. While the guard was occupied, Ash quickly grabbed a mega stone and hurled it towards Charizard, before scampering back. When she turned to hit Charizard again, she was surprised to see that he hadn't attempted to snatch a stone this time. Turning back, she saw the infuriating Charizard give her a wink as orange light engulfed him.

The experience of mega evolving a Pokémon for the first time felt like a surreal experience to Ash. Sure, he had experienced the bond phenomenon and it really wasn't much different on surface, this process was far more comfortable for him. Maybe it was due to the presence of the stones... It wasn't as if Ash was ever going to understand this, but there was much less strain on him then when he maintained Ash-Greninja.

Charizard silently observed his new form. His wings had elongated and his body had become much more streamlined. Suddenly, the valley was engulfed in bright light, almost as if the sun had risen in the evening. "Drought..." Gary muttered. "It's almost like two Pokémon have used sunny day on the field." This extra light showcased more of his distinctive features. He has gained a much longer third horn and even his claws had gained secondary, wing like appendages.

Mega Charizard-Y let out a huge roar to celebrate his victory. Ash wasn't to be left behind in his celebrations however. He quickly sent out his whole team to see this for themselves and posed.

"Alright! I've got a Mega Charizard-Y!"

"Pi-pikachu!"

"Rizaaaaar!"

"Hold it you three!" Liza stopped their celebrations short. "You've not got a mega stone yet!"

"What?" Ash's jaw went slack, and Charizard went to outright gawking. Even Gary was stumped. Charla snorted in amusement.

Liza chuckled. "It's not a lucky draw, you know? Your picking up the charizardite-Y does not mean you will be getting one."

Before anyone could interrupt, she pressed. "Now it's up to me to decide which stone your Charizard should recieve. And since I know that he prefers fighting physically, I think a charizardite-X will suit him much better."

She grinned and gestured dramatically. "So! Ash and Charizard, congratulations on winning your very own Charizardite-X!"

She laughed. "Now can I get my charizardite-Y back...?"

Ash quickly stopped sustaining the mega evolution and returned the mega stone. Charla approached her mate and slipped him a black bracelet, which also had the charizardite-X embedded in it. "You know Charizard," Liza noted casually, "Charla has this ready for you since the day we started recieving the stones, you know? And I bought her the bracelet on 14th of February no less! So, you still want the charizardite-Y back, huh?"

Charizard frantically shook his head and everyone had a good laugh out of it. Liza advised Ash to refrain from trying to mega evolve his Charizard again so soon, and everyone exited the valley satisfied.

By the time the two reached the Pokémon centre, it was quite dark. Feeling thankful for having the foresight to rent the room earlier, they submitted their pokémon to nurse Joy for check-up and had dinner. They then called up professor Oak and told him all about the trial. Ash also asked him if the heracronite was nearby (having recalled that Heracross were Johto natives as well) and if the sceptilite was, indeed, sent to the Petalburg woods.

"So, what do you wanna do next Ashy-boy?" Gary finally asked.

"Hmm... we could search for that forest ranger we met in the nearby forest back then... he'll surely have a hint about where we can find the Heracronites. Or I could catch a quick ferry to Hoenn and get myself a sceptilite..." Ash mused.

"You do know that Hoenn and Sinnoh are worlds apart, huh?" Gary asked. "I won't be able to drop you home tomorrow if we go there..."

"I can take care of myself!" Ash retorted.

"Dream on," Gary teased. He added, "I'd rather we search for the Heracronite till tomorrow afternoon and return to Pallet by the evening. I have to return, haven't I?"

Ash sighed in defeat, "Okay, I guess." He yawned. "Man, I'm tired. I'll just make a quick call to mom and then sleep. Good night."

"Yeah, night," Gary returned the gesture half-heartedly and set off outside the centre to stretch his legs out.

 **Author's Note:**

 **So how was the trial? I don't think I really aced it, but it's okay I guess. I won't guarantee any more mega stones though.**

 **This is a relatively short chapter... the only thing that actually happens here is the trial. I'm still planning how to proceed ahead with the story, and might have to reconsider a few things before I start updating content again. Won't be long, but I decided to pen and post this trial while the ideas were fresh.**

 **Please review. Thanks.**


	5. Interlude 1 (Ch3-4)

**Author's Note:**

 **This is the first interlude in this story. This means that Ash (or someone from Alola) isn't going to be the focus of this chapter. Plus, this is the longest chapter I've posted till date.**

 **This chapter focuses on Max and Serena as they attend the Wallace cup in Lilicove city and plan their next step. I've tried to write a couple of contest battles in this as well, and I'd appreciate it if you guys gave them a chance and gave me some honest opinions about them. This will help me decide whether and how heavily I want to feature contests in the next Serena-focused chapters.**

 **Also making an appearance are May, Dawn, Drew and Zoey. Harley is briefly mentioned. Please tell if you feel that any character is acting OOC from its anime counterpart.**

 **By the way... I remembered that Kalos league ended in summer, and that Wallace Cup takes place every year in summers. So, I think it's okay that the Wallace cup randomly pops up in my story isn't it?**

 **Hope you enjoy this. Please review!**

INTERLUDE

 _Max and Serena 1_

When Serena had reached Lilicove city, she had been surprised to learn that the 'Wallace Cup' was already underway. In fact, Max's family had planned to miss the 'appeals' as well as the first day of battle round as their daughter, _May_ , was 'all but through.'

"Dad can't close his gym for more than a day because it's the time of the season when 4th-5th badge challengers come," Max had explained. "It's not as if she was going to face any real trouble getting past the early rounds anyway."

Serena marvelled at how confident the family was regarding May's chances in a competition of more than two hundred co-ordinators from all over the world... but perhaps it was due to her being a veteran. She figured it would be hard to imagine Ash losing before getting to at least last 8 in any Pokémon league for example. Not that she minded much; with what little she had learnt about contests before deciding to give them a go, she figured she needn't worry about the appeals at least. They weren't extremely different to freestyle performances (with only one or two Pokémon, of course).

Till now she had found Max good company. Albeit only nearing ten years, he always looked like knew what he was saying. She was aware she shouldn't judge someone who she had barely met, but she was almost positive that Max must have prepared really well for his upcoming journey. It helped that he had travelled before and knew what he aimed to become. She was reminded yet again of how indecisive she herself had been when she finally left home at the age of fifteen. When she had mentioned it to Max, he had simply snorted and come back at her with the story of how May began her journey.

 _At least I wasn't as bad as her._ She had seen some of her past contests while researching her next step after the Master class, and it was really hard to imagine this confident and energetic co-ordinator being indifferent towards pokémon and using a Pokémon journey as an excuse to roam the world. Perhaps people who have seen her final performance in the master class thought the same of her? She knew _she_ had become so much more confident after her own journey.

 _Pokémon journeys are really wonderful,_ she thought, _with how they teach people to dream and stand up for themselves._ She found herself envying Max momentarily. _When he starts traveling, he will always be in control and will simply be able to enjoy whatever is ahead without worrying about his future._

Even after the almost random nature of their meeting and despite barely knowing each other, they had gotten along well. They had already found a lot of common ground as he too seemed to look up to Ash, and both had some great stories to share. Well, he _certainly_ had some really unbelievable ones. _What? Ash had believed Beautifly's 'magic powder!' would work! Pikachu too! And he cross-dressed to help a guy practice proposing!_ In response she had told him about that strange cave, the Malamar conspiracy... all he had to add to those was a head shake and a muttered "same old Ash."

He had treated her very well till now. When she commented about it, he simply shrugged and said, "Ash knows how to pick his friends, you know. With how great Misty was to me and how much Dawn reminds me of May, I am sure I'll get along just fine with anyone Ash has travelled with. Besides, something about you too reminds me of May after she finally got involved with contests."

Surprised, Serena simply turned her attention back to the stage, which was the sight of first of the top-16 elimination round.

"Please welcome the two co-ordinators on stage. Facing off are two former top coordinators: Zoey from Snowpoint City in Sinnoh and Drew from LaRousse town! Give them a big hand!" Announced Marian as two teenagers walked up to the stage from the opposite ends. Zoey was a tall girl with short red hair. Her posture exuded confidence and she reached her end with long, firm steps. She was wearing a trendy-looking baby pink suit with some gold and white frills. He opponent Drew matched her in her confidence at least. He flicked his emerald green bangs once, eliciting some "oohs!" from the spectators, and flourished a blue rose before placing it back in the chest pocket of his vermilion blazer.

"This is interesting," Max stated.

"Oh?" She asked curiously. She figured the match between two former champions would be great, but it looked like Max knew something which she didn't.

"Drew was May's first ever rival. Likewise, Zoey for Dawn," he explained.

This certainly caught her attention. These were two people who were connected to Ash's former companions and she was raring to see what they were capable of. One of the ways to find out more about someone was through his rival after all. The main screen showed their faces and a yellow circle beside each of them. In the middle was a timer set at five minutes.

Zoey released a Leafeon and Drew sent out a Sneasel. "Sneasel has the advantage," she muttered to herself as if recalling type matchups. Max overheard and chuckled softly. "What?" She asked with a slight blush; even if she was older, she had travelled for only a year. "It doesn't work that way in contests," Max simply replied as the Pokémon sized each other up before taking their stances before a buzzer sounded and the battle began.

It looked like both the co-ordinators wanted to move second. After five seconds of awkward silence, the two finally attacked together.

"Sneasel use ice beam!"

"Leafeon, swift!"

Sneasel fired an ice beam straight at Leafeon, who flourished her tail in a graceful (but completely unnecessary if Serena was to be asked) way before firing the golden stars she was well familiar with. The two attacks collided in mid-air and Drew lost a tiny amount of points. Sensing Serena's confusion, Max pitched in, "that was because Leafeon's attack looked nice." _It did, come to think of that. So, the aim here is to look nice in battle...?_ However, Drew was unfazed and when the smoke cleared, it showed multiple copies of Sneasel performing acrobatics even as they ran towards the Leafeon. "Get closer with aerial ace and then use beat up!" Drew ordered, as all the copies of Sneasel temporarily grew a pretty silvery sheen and then dived towards the grass type. Midway through though, they all pushed off from the ground and backflipped so fast that it almost seemed as if they had gone invisible to finally reappear on the other side. Each of these copies burst into multiple faint, dark substitutes which all charged towards the feline. "And Sneasel shows off his great speed and athleticism while using double team!" commented the announcer.

Zoey though had seen enough. "Use magical leaf and then synthesis!" Her Leafeon closed its eyes and sent out multi-coloured leaves, which swirled outwards to cancel out the double team even as the real Sneasel and his beat-up substitutes dodged and approached it. Leafeon took the attack, but glowed golden almost as soon as they hit. This created a beautiful contrast with the black shapes around her and showed off her body. Both Drew and Zoey lost roughly equal amount of points this time round, although Drew still lost more due to his move being used by Zoey to show off her Pokémon. This, added to his previous loss, gave Zoey a somewhat healthy lead with around three minutes remaining.

"And Zoey has successfully countered Sneasel's move and showed off Leafeon's beauty at the same time!"

"So that's what it was about? Finding ways to show off your Pokémon and their abilities while battling?" She asked, having realised that Drew had showed off his pokémon's agility and flexibility by using double team and its shiny black fur through the silvery gleam of aerial ace while causing damage with beat up. On the other hand, Zoey had shown off her Leafeon's beautiful magical leaf attack while destroying the double team and shown off its body even as it took damage. _Oh! And she hasn't even touched Sneasel yet, but is still leading!_

"That's about right," explained Max's mom Caroline. "But dealing damage is still important: if you can knock the other Pokémon out within five minutes, you automatically win the battle."

"Then why isn't Sneasel trying to do so?" She asked. "It is using acrobatics and other time-consuming stuff while he has two super-effective attacks."

"Because," her husband Norman explained, "there is a time limit on the battle, so Leafeon only has to survive for five minutes. This means that if Drew starts attacking head on, all Zoey has to do is dodge and counter. He sighed and muttered, "and for some reason they award points for dodging successfully as well."

"And Drew knows this well himself as his starter is a Roserade," Max added.

The clock had run down to the final thirty seconds by then, and Serena had enjoyed every moment of it. She liked how this was more like a battle-themed performance than a properly competitive battle. It was almost like baking a poké-puff in a theme performance if a gym battle was like baking a basket of them for breakfast. One was supposed to be good-looking and showy while the other had to be tasty and adequate.

At the moment the battle was in a tight situation: although both the contestants had lost more points, Drew had managed to reduce the gap to almost nothing. This was basically due to the fact that Leafeon had to stay on the defence throughout, and had to repeat the synthesis trick two more times just to stay healthy till the end. Apparently, the judges didn't like seeing a trick repeated and had given her lesser points for pulling it off again. When she voiced her opinions, Caroline shrugged. "What's important is that she has survived till now and even managed to keep her early lead intact. Since it is almost time, she can now go all out and perform a flashy move of her own.

Almost as if she had heard them, Zoey made the first move for the first time in the match. "Leafeon, Swift-blade spiral!" _What attack is this!_ Serena wondered, but her query was answered almost immediately as Leafeon began prowling in a circle, covering the whole field, while firing her Swift. Simultaneously its tail glowed brighter from using leaf blade and it started hitting the stars on their edges lightly. This added extra spin and momentum to the stars, which then started moving in a horizontal spiral and closing into a completely surrounded Sneasel. Drew lost even more points as his points tally began edging dangerously close to zero. _So, this was a combination move like Ash's super flying cut! But that involved both Froakie and Hawlucha..._

Drew was no slouch at countering attacks himself however. He waited till the right moment and then asked Sneasel to jump up and use ice beam on the floor. Sneasel jumped high in the air and began keeping itself up with the ice beam. This simple move thwarted the highly accurate attack as the ice beam stuck down those stars which tried to follow it above. Eventually though the Swift attack's trajectory altered sufficiently and started to target it once more. But Drew still had a trick up his sleeve. "Drop down and use aerial ace! Full power!"

Sneasel abruptly cancelled the ice beam and dropped to the ground, which had been cleared of the stars by then. It used the momentum of the fall to propel itself into a quick aerial ace. The surprised Leafeon was too slow to stop its swift and dodge the flying type move. The matters were made worse when the already fired Swift followed and crashed into it along with Sneasel. Zoey ordered her to ward them off with a hasty defensive magical leaf and added a synthesis for good measure.

At this point, the buzzer rang and both Pokémon stopped attacking instantly. The Leafeon was panting heavily but still standing, while the Sneasel appeared winded at best. However, the damage sustained by the two in contest points was much, much more even, though one co-ordinator held a slender lead... "After that amazing last-ditch turnaround, former Johto grand festival top coordinator Drew from LaRousse City has clinched the wonderful match! Give him a big hand!"

Serena cheered as loudly as anyone, though she couldn't help but feel slightly nervous about the prospect of her battling on stage in this manner. Her complete journey in Kalos had been centred first on finding a goal and then on trying to be the Kalos Queen, not to mention supporting Ash on his journey, and battling simply wasn't her strongest point. It wasn't like she didn't have experience; she had handled team rocket a lot of times as well as had training battles against Ash, Clemont and Aria(na) for instance... but seeing this battle, she decided it simply wasn't enough. The idea of contests did not lose its appeal to her though as this kind of battling was something she figured she could get used to.

"So, you enjoyed it," Max noted as the applause died down and the crowd dispersed for a short break.

"Yeah I... Uh-I think this is something I want to learn." Serena replied. "I suppose I'll enjoy battling more if all my battles they are like this."

"Just like May." Max chuckled. "She had practically latched onto the idea of becoming a coordinator right from the first contest we saw."

"Not to sound rude or something but I don't _want_ to be a co-ordinator, you know?" Serena explained hesitantly. "It's just that I want to grow strong enough to protect myself and become good at battling with my pokémon while still brushing up my performance skills. This is why I decided to try contests after Showcases."

Max simply shrugged and replied, "Don't sweat about it. None of us are contest-crazy like May. Just don't go about saying this to co-ordinators and contest-fans... they are one prickly bunch." Max chuckled as he recalled a few of his own experiences. "I myself prefer _real_ battling any time of the day."

"So, what do you really want to become?" Caroline asked.

"Um... I still want to be the Kalos Queen before I take my next step," she replied. "After that..." she furrowed her brow slightly. "I just want to be a performer who makes people smile, at least that I am sure of. How I don't know. I might start holding concerts and participating in shows... I don't know really, something will occur to me eventually."

Max's parents smiled at her when she said this. "This is a very good approach to life," Norman commended her. "It is really good that you have set targets for yourself to achieve after you have given this Showcase thing your all."

"This is how adults work," added Caroline with a wink. "I just hope a certain someone realises this sooner rather than later..."

"Do you mean May?" Max asked with his eyes narrowing. "What's wrong with her dream of becoming a Master Co-ordinator?"

"Oh, nothing for you to worry about," Caroline quickly said to appease her son as Norman gave Serena a meaningful look.

 _Wonder what they meant with that... Why will they consider her dream of becoming a master co-ordinator childish? Isn't she doing well at what she likes?_ Serena made a mental note to talk about this with the two adults whenever she got a chance next, and turned to the stage where the announcer was calling the attention of the viewers back to herself.

For the next few hours, Serena simply let her forget her doubts and enjoy all the battles that were taking place. She was amazed by most of them and stunned by how many battling styles she had witnessed and been able to discern despite not being very familiar with the format before today.

The blunette who travelled with Ash in Sinnoh seemed to favour using spinning, bouncing and the like to either dodge or attack. She also showed off a few _really_ flashy combination moves throughout her five-minute battle which awed Serena no end. Max's sister May on the other hand... she couldn't help but notice that her battle style had a hint of Ash in it. She did use some good combinations and occasionally defended very creatively, but generally was the one who attacked first. She kept and kept coming at her opponent and generally maintained a really high pressure.

When she mentioned this to Max, he replied softly, "Yeah I know. Everything she learnt till she went to Johto was mostly due to him. She thought that her style was not suited for a contest when she finally decided to travel alone, and she really tried hard to change it but... her Johto challenge was mostly a downgrade, you know?" Norman added his insight to their little conversation, "But I then made her understand that battle styles reflect one's personality and a person's style is just as natural as his character. Thus, the style which came naturally to her _was_ always going to be hers and she needed to adapt it to contest rather than try to change. She has done better since."

"So, is she like Ash in a lot of things?" Serena asked, intrigued.

"It did look like that to me," Caroline said. "From what I've seen of him, he has the same recklessness and sense of adventure as May... not to mention his love for traveling and eating." That did sound like Ash to Serena. "Seems like we'll get along well then," she observed to herself.

Besides the two of them, there were people who focused on letting the opponent attack and make the best out of it, some who tried really hard to knock the opponent out (these were mostly younger though), one or two whose battles were more like a light show with various permutations and combinations of frosty ice beams, green and pulsating signal beams, orange flamethrowers... To sum it up, she had a lot of options to choose from when she started her detour into the world of Pokémon contests.

There was one contestant who particularly stood out to her. He seemed to be barely eleven and was possibly only a beginner, but what made him different was that he was using a male Meowstic in his battle, which was the only Kalosian Pokémon she had seen till now in the whole tournament. Furthermore, his battle style was loosely based on movements which almost seemed like a dance routine, use of the whole field, constant action and flashy attacks. If he wasn't a boy, she would have guessed that he was a performer like her too.

This coordinator had just been called along with May for their quarter final match. "Please give up a big round of applause for the winner of last year's Wallace Cup, the famous Princess of Hoenn, May from Petalburg City! Facing her is the youngest and the only remaining coordinator in the tournament who has never participated in a grand festival before! Welcome Callum from Vaniville Town in Kalos!"

May was wearing an extremely pretty white and lilac robe and had covered her head with a lilac veil. The overall attire had a very regal feel to it and was well complemented by the elegance with which she carried it. Callum had worn a simple blue jean and a deep blue jacket, and a deep red hat to compliment it. The overall appearance however seemed almost... casual.

"Blaziken! Shinx! On stage!" May hollered to a huge roar and threw the two balls energetically. The balls burst to reveal multi-coloured glittering stars which were quickly dispersed by Blaziken all around the two Pokémon while Shinx merely gave a nervous little smile. _I'm in love with the idea of using pokéball capsules and seals. They're so pretty!_

"Frogadier and Meowstic, let's do this." With that, Callum simply threw his two pokéballs and his Pokémon appeared, poised as if ready to take off at a moment's notice. The crowd gave a decent cheer for him as well: apparently, he had already made some fans with his showing till now.

"I knew May would go with Shinx in this match," Max muttered. "Oh?" Asked Serena. "Is it one of her better performers?"

"No, in fact she has only caught her recently," Max explained. "May has been competing in Sinnoh for some time now. She has already got four ribbons... but she hasn't caught a lot of Pokémon there. In fact, there is only a Cherrim and this Shinx. This one was caught barely a month ago."

"So, either she's taking a huge risk here or Shinx is a natural," she observed, recalling her Sylveon's debut as an Eevee in a Showcase. "Neither," Max declared. "May has already won four ribbons in Sinnoh and she is in no hurry to win the fifth. So, she is really trying to get her new Pokémon some experience before the Sinnoh grand festival. And Shinx also has some confidence issues, so May wanted to let her have a double battle first to get a hang of it. This is the safest double battle she will get here anyway."

"Okay..." she turned her attention back to the stage as the battle began.

"Blaziken, spiral flamethrower on Meowstic! Shinx helping hand then charge!" Blaziken shot a boosted flamethrower in a horizontal spiral towards the psychic type. Shinx began running through the loops of fire towards Meowstic while glowing yellow due to spark. This was spectacular to watch and docked Callum of a significant amount of points. To the surprise of May, the opposing Pokémon began charging straight towards the attack. May ordered Shinx to use spark as soon as they were near enough, expecting the Frogadier (who she knew to be a water-type from Ash) to try and block the flames with water.

It never came though, as both Frogadier and Meowstic simply cartwheeled away at the last instant, throwing Shinx off balance. "Smokescreen!" Frogadier immediately used a smokescreen and covered the whole area around them and Shinx with dense smoke. This caused Shinx to panic. In her attempt to return, she accidentally ran into the Flamethrower which Blaziken was trying to direct towards the new location of Meowstic even as he abruptly cut them off. This successful display of agility and timing cost May some points as well. "Bubble Pulse!" Callum directed as if trying to use Blaziken's momentary lapse in concentration to his advantage. May had other plans.

"Hit them with shadow claw!" She ordered as Blaziken readied himself to handle the oncoming water attack. It never came though; the Frogadier had simply shot a huge amount of bubbles in the sky and was passing small dark pulses around them even as they descended. Meowstic on the other hand simply kept dancing around the field, performing cartwheels and back flips to burst the bubbles which reached the ground. This created a glittering shimmer of blue, purple and yellow (from the lights) and Meowstic's fur started shining slightly due to all the water which had landed on her.

 _Wow, they are simply doing a freestyle performance while dodging and creating openings!_ Serena thought.

The Maples and most of the other viewers however were wondering why the Meowstic hadn't even performed a move yet, or why the new boy seemed almost reluctant to attack his opponent. May however lost a sizable chunk of points due to falling straight into the trap laid by Callum and spending time doing nothing.

With having lost her advantage as well as on the hunch that the opponent is going to keep doing his own thing, she ordered Shinx, seeing that the smoke around him had dispelled, to begin charging up for the chance that the opponents tried a sneak attack. That done, she ordered Blaziken, "Fire storm!"

Blaziken surrounded himself with a fire spin and then started spreading them out by fanning them with his claws. All this while, he had covered one claw with the energy from shadow claw even as the other one glowed white from the first stage of sky uppercut. Once he had finished using fire spin, he started using flamethrower on his fanning claws, leaking their energy into the fire and colouring it, and directing it outside. To the viewers, this setup looked like a huge tornado of orange-red flames with alternating flashes of black and white visible from the inside, and black and white-tinted flames escaping out of it in straight lines. This complete setup rotated due to Blaziken's movement like a top. Callum started losing points steadily as May performed her own appeal in the battle and finally built up a lead in the points tally.

Unfazed, Callum simply ordered Meowstic and Frogadier to start jumping and flipping over the flamethrower attacks and running towards Blaziken. This simple act stopped his points from dropping further and caused May a slight loss due to him using her appeal to show off his pokémon. Once they were near, Frogadier jumped into the fire spin and faced Blaziken.

May simply ordered Shinx to use a supercharged spark attack on Frogadier and Blaziken to knock Frogadier into her path with a sky uppercut. That was when disaster struck.

"You know what to do, Meowstic."

After what had been three minutes of running around, dodging, performing acrobatics and dancing after a fashion, Meowstic finally made his first attack of the match. He ran fast, dived into the fire spin and used fake out on May's starter. Visibly flinching, Blaziken was left open to a close-range water pulse from Frogadier and took a lot of damage. Things got even worse as Shinx, who was aiming for the frog, barrelled with her charge-boosted spark attack into her soaked teammate, who was sent flying a few feet away. May's points suffered a huge drop.

Blaziken was not one to give up that easily however. He pulled himself back on his feet and braced himself for another order from his trainer. Before May could react though, Callum had another command ready.

"Psychic on Blaziken. Dark Pulse on Shinx."

"Dodge it, both of you!" Shouted May, whose brain was furiously trying to think up a way to turn things around like she had done so many times before.

Meowstic, who had done so much damage to May's starter as well as her prospects by simply timing her fake out to perfection, used a psychic attack on the fighting type even as he tried to get out of the way sluggishly. This time he was flung straight into the opposite wall and was automatically pulled back in by his pokéball, clearly out for the count. Shinx, on the other hand, was too shaken by the fact that her teammate had been hit by her own attack, and didn't even notice the dark pulse that hit her in her flank. She skidded back a few paces from the impact but was still capable of battling. Physically, at least.

Her mind was frozen however when she realised that Blaziken, _the_ strong one of her team, had fainted. May had assured her that Blaziken would let nothing happen to her in the match, and that everything would be fine. But she had messed things up. She had attacked her partner. She let out a pitiful whimper.

"Are you alright Shinx?" May's voice was heard by everyone except to whom it was directed. Noticing May's concerned face, Callum ordered his pokémon, who were juggling psychically-maintained shadow balls and water pulses with each other at that point, to stop.

Getting no response, May sighed dejectedly and recalled Shinx. She then steeled herself, complimented Callum and all but stormed away from the stage.

"We need to find her," Caroline urgently declared as she set off towards the exits, followed closely by her family. Serena looked back once, wondered if she should intrude upon what would surely be a private moment, before following them out. It wasn't like she had any choice; besides, she thought her Sylveon might be able to help the poor pokémon out with her experiences.

When she finally managed to catch up to Max, he was looking slightly uncomfortable. Wondering, she stayed back a bit and noticed May crying softly in her mother's arms, with her father muttering words of encouragement.

"She can get like this sometimes," Max whispered softly to her. "But she'll bounce back real quick if I know her," he added confidently. Serena could not believe him though. Even if she had started off really well and that fire storm was perhaps the single prettiest thing Serena had seen today, she was ultimately completely undone by a new co-ordinator. That had to hurt. A lot.

May got over her defeat within minutes.

Of course she didn't feel remotely like the girl from Ash's and the Maples' stories, but she was already telling everyone that it didn't matter anyway; that she still had more than enough time to help Shinx recover from this loss, get her new Pokémon ready, touch up her old routines and create new ones, explore the rest of Sinnoh and worst came to worst, she would still be able to use her last year's Wallace cup 'Aqua ribbon' as her fifth and enter the grand festival. At this point Serena finally made her presence known to the slightly younger brunette by asking what she meant by that.

"You don't know? Those who win the Wallace cup get an Aqua ribbon, which is counted in Hoenn, Johto, Kanto and Sinnoh. In short, winning it means a ribbon less to earn for entering every grand festival of the world!" May explained while pulling out her ribbon case from an inside pocket of her new traveling attire, which was made up of tight black capries, a pale blue top and a dark blue bandanna with an outline of a pokéball on it. "See? This one! Pretty isn't it?" She pointed to a particular ribbon while casually showing off the sheer number of them she had. Serena chuckled and stage-whispered while looking towards Max, "She's just like Ash alright."

May's eyes widened comically and she gasped. "You know Ash? As in Ash Ketchum?" She pressed on, "How? Who are you anyway and why do you look familiar?"

"Calm down li'l sis, don't overwhelm her," Max remarked in a surprisingly snarky voice. May's eyes narrowed and she said darkly, "who are you calling li'l sis, huh Max?"

"You, who else," he shrugged and quickly hid behind a surprised (and slightly scared) Serena. Thankfully, May was still within an arm's reach of her mom, who quickly grabbed her before she could try to pounce on the annoying little brat of her brother. "Calm down May. Is this the first impression you want to make on Ash's newest traveling companion?"

On hearing that, May noticed Serena again and blushed in embarrassment. "Oh, so you're Serena. I've heard a lot about you." She offered a hand for her to shake, which she accepted.

"Hey there. Ash told me a lot about you too..." Serena greeted back. "By the way, how do you know about me?"

"Oh, it's nothing really. He told Brock about you and Brock told me." May shrugged. "By the way, I watched the highlights of your performance in the Showcase thing on pokévision and it was really cool! I bet you'll do very well in contests!"

"Thanks," Serena replied. "In fact, that's what I'm here for you know. I'm going to enter contests here."

"Wow! You'll be the third coordinator after me and Dawn who Ash has found. He's almost making a habit of it." She giggled. "Maybe he already is a master co-ordinator himself." Everyone laughed at this strange image.

"By the way, if you're already here... has Ash left Kalos too? Where's he going now?" May asked Serena.

This question was answered by Max, who had resurfaced from hiding as soon as the conversation had gotten to the topic of Serena. "He said he's gonna stay in Pallet town for a while."

"Perfect. I've wanted to call him for so long now. It sucks that he's always on the road," May said. "In fact, let's call him now from the Pokémon centre."

"Hey, cool it sis!" Max relayed, "Ash said he's going to be busy today and tomorrow."

"Won't hurt to try!" May stuck her tongue out cheekily and ran off towards the Pokémon centre. Or tried to, at least, but she had forgotten to extract herself from the clutches of her mother, who was watching the kids bemused. "At least let's have dinner first May, we're all hungry." As if straight on cue, May's stomach growled.

"That I can agree with." A blushing May nodded firmly.

The group dined in a restaurant of May's choice as Serena found herself appreciating another side of the girl. Dinner was a generally pleasant affair with May having regained her good spirits. Serena told her about how shy her Sylveon was as an Eevee and how she had once suffered stage-fright, and offered to let her help Shinx out. This wasn't the right thing to do perhaps... although May had complied and Shinx had cheered up somewhat, May herself was subdued by the reminder of her harsh loss in the match.

"It's fine May," Serena, feeling bold, tried to console her gently. "Although I don't know much about contests, I do realise that you were facing two new Pokémon, and if not for Ash, you wouldn't have known even Frogadier. Plus, your fire storm was really pretty. Take it from a performer, it's really high praise." She grinned.

"Thanks. But still... it's not as if I lost to Solidad, Drew or Dawn. I lost to a rookie trainer and I never really had control over the match!" She sighed.

"May, do you realise how many veterans you yourself defeated when you were a rookie trainer?" Norman asked gently. "Rookie does not mean less talented. Sometimes during our journeys, we get so occupied with defeating our rivals that we do not even realise when someone fresh arrives and defeats you. You remember your first match with Dawn and how much it taught you right? Let this match be the same and learn something from it."

"Yeah, you're right," May said in a slightly lighter tone.

"By the way," a voice interjected, "Solidad defeated him in the very next match. He apparently had only two Pokémon with him, and had to repeat them against her. It's her and Drew for the final." Looking up, Serena saw Dawn and Zoey approaching the small group. "Hey, who is this?"

"Hi I'm Serena. I travelled with Ash in Kalos and I want to learn more about contests and participate in them."

This piece of information excited Dawn no end (Zoey shook her head slightly) and she quickly grabbed one of her and May's wrists and pulled them away from the rest of the group. Thus, May and Serena ended up staying in the Pokémon centre lobby with the two coordinators from Sinnoh for almost three hours, in which they mostly discussed Contests and explained a lot of things to Serena, but eventually drifted to simply recounting their experiences and stories of traveling with Ash. Solidad and Drew also joined them for a few minutes and she ended up explaining her theories on how Callum's style was like a freestyle performance to the eager group of co-ordinators. Dawn immediately declared she was going to enter a showcase one day, with May wondering if she should attempt Kalos after she had gotten through Sinnoh (which surprisingly was the only grand festival left for her to attend by that point). Solidad had abruptly declared that this was going to be her last contest and that she was planning on opening an apparel shop which would also double as a coordination academy in Pewter city. This had shocked those who knew her and she had merely said that she had started feeling awkward competing in contests nowadays, as most people were much younger than her. The stakes for the final match had immediately been raised tenfold and everyone had decided to stay and watch it tomorrow.

The only matches held the next day were the final and the third-place match between Dawn and Harley, which Dawn won. The final match had gone to Drew however, who, Serena learnt, had lost to Solidad in his first ever contest. _The way such things work..._

Now having attended the whole tournament and spent so much time with some really great co-ordinators, Serena was feeling much surer of her next step. The only things left to work out now were the smaller details like where to begin. Presently though, a group of curious teenagers were huddled in the Pokémon centre's phone booth...

 _Ring-ring-ring Ring-ring-Ring Phoneca-_

"Hello Ketchum Residence?" Delia appeared on the screen, and then her eyes widened when she saw the callers' face(s).

"Hello Mrs Ketchum!" Dawn greeted brightly. "Long time no see!"

Delia exchanged greetings and small talk with all the callers and was introduced to Zoey, who had expressed interest in seeing Ash again for some reason. When the talk came to Ash, however, Delia sighed. But before she could actually say anything, they all heard Ash say, "Mom I'm back!"

"Oh right. Hey Ash! Come here for a bit. There's a call for you."

After a few moments, a very dishevelled and tired looking Ash appeared on their screens. Seeing the caller(s) his eyes widened and he involuntarily took a defensive stance. "Hey guys."

"What's up Ash? You look beat," Dawn asked the obvious question.

"Yeah I'm really tired. You won't believe what a day I've had."

"It's you we're talking about Ash," May jested playfully. "Try us."

"Is this about what you were busy with Ash?" Max asked with concern.

As if he was waiting for this signal, Ash launched headfirst into his adventure over the two days. The group was very excited when Ash told them about what he knew of the locations of various mega stones, and tried to pull out the complete story of how he got his new Charizardite-X. After the round of congratulations ("oh by the way congrats for Kalos league. You did great.") and excited murmurs was concluded, he began ranting about how he had been led on a goose hunt through half of Johto's forests in search of Heracross colonies (which were plenty) and someone who might be in control or might have a hint about the location of the mega stone, only to be informed by professor Oak in the evening that no heracronites had been sent to Johto yet due to abundance of Heracross in Kalos and Sinnoh and the relative lack of discovered mega stones.

"Man! And I was so psyched!"

The group tried its best to console their common friend and point out his great luck in even having one of them, while fighting laughter over his antics. Eventually though the conversation shifted to the girls and the Wallace cup, then to Zoey, who surprised everyone by declaring that she is going to take a break from the contest circuit and take up a gym challenge in Hoenn (to try something new and to get better at battling by experiencing some gym battles; but ultimately to improve as a co-ordinator of course) and asking Ash for tips on how to approach this new challenge.

Max listened his mentor's advices attentively along with Zoey. Noticing him, Ash said, "Congrats on getting your first rival Max!" He grinned. "She is one tough battler and you'll have your work cut out in the league!"

Max abruptly realised the full implication of Zoey's decision. "Awesome!" He said, addressing Zoey, "you better be ready for me when I have my team ready!"

"You bet I will," Zoey replied nonchalantly.

This ultimately brought them to Serena's and Max's plans and Ash offered them an interesting suggestion.

"Hey Max... have you decided your starter yet?"

"What, you forgot?" Max chided. "I promised that Ralts which we saved that I'll catch him as my starter, remember?"

Ash scrunched his brow in concentration and eventually remembered. "So, you'd want to be near wherever you met him in about a month's time eh? So that you can catch him as soon as you get your trainer's licence?"

"I never really thought of that." Max blushed slightly. Embarrassingly enough, he had planned on beginning his journey from professor Birch's lab with a little Ralts without even bothering about the little detail of how Ralts would actually get there. "Oh." He buried himself in his map, which he had carried here to explain Serena as much as he could about the region. "Well... it was near Sootopolis."

May and Serena leaned over the map. "Huh. That's too far from home..." May sighed. "Will you go there and back by ferry or something?"

"It doesn't seem far from here though," Serena opined. "You can find him and take him back home with you...?"

"Hey you know what Max! What if you started your journey from Sootopolis rather than Petalburg?" Ash asked, to the puzzlement of everyone present.

"But why would I do that? How will I get my licence and stuff?" Max finally asked.

"Well... getting licence is easy. You simply have to get it transported to a Pokémon centre! As for why... think about it Max. You remember my gym challenge, right? How the battles became harder as I got more badges?"

"Yeah... so?"

"So... if you say start from Sootopolis, the first gym you'll face will be the Sootopolis Gym! So, you'll actually get easy battles where I had my harder ones. But you know what's the fun bit? You'll get to challenge the gyms where I had it easy and face their best teams!"

Max started to get the hint, and boy it got him charged. "So ... I might face a different challenge then what I already know about from traveling with you?" He practically squealed, "And I might make dad use his Slaking on me! I'm in!" He whooped once, then sagged. "But still... I have planned so many things in the last two years and this would change everything."

May quickly reassured him, "so what! you have a whole month to make new plans. Dad says you were basically overthinking in the last two years! Besides, have you ever seen Ash plan?"

"Hey! I too plan!" Ash exclaimed from the other end, and this time no one held any laughter back, Ash himself joining in eventually.

After the laughter had subsided, Ash turned to Serena. "What about you? Where are you going to begin?"

"Well... I was going to from Petalburg but you never told me that you were planning to get me shipped here right on my first day in Hoenn. Now I'm not really sure."

"No need to worry!" Dawn chimed in, "Us co-ordinators can begin anywhere we like! Every place which has a contest hall organises its contests very frequently!"

"Hmm... What if you begin from right here?" May offered. "I mean... since a contest has just been done today, the next contest here will still be a while later. So, you can take as long as you like to prepare. _Or_ you can simply begin traveling and have your first contest in the next town."

"Hey Max?" Ash inquired. "How long will it take to walk to Sootopolis from here at the pace we used to travel?"

The boy in question analysed his Map and replied, "around 15-20 days I suppose... why?"

"Serena! Why don't you and Max tag along together till Sootopolis at least?" Ash asked enthusiastically. "Max can tell you a lot about Hoenn and its pokémon and he knows a lot about battling too!" He turned his eyes towards Max. "And Serena has experience and is very good at taking care of Pokémon! Also, she is really awesome at baking! She might even teach you how to bake Poké-puffs! I bet your pokémon will like them lots!" After pausing to catch his breath momentarily, he concluded, "Besides, journeys are so much fun when you have your friends with you!"

"You never do things by half, right Ash?" Dawn laughed along with Zoey, while May and Max started discussing the suggestions amongst themselves.

 _This might just work out,_ Max thought.

 **Author's Note:**

 **Whew.**

 **1) Sorry about being too harsh on May... I might have got a bit overboard. But I really wanted to have a new coordinator making his presence known in the same way May and Dawn have in the anime. I mean, why do they always keep staying on the top in every fanfic out there? Surely what has upstaged someone can be upstaged by someone.**

 **2) On a related note, Callum is technically an OC, but aside from being interested in contests (as it looks like right now), he is totally** _ **CALEM**_ **from Pokémon X and Pokémon Y. Then why did I not simply call him Calem? Well... he is Calem but he isn't... Anyway, looks like Serena has a rival.**

 **3) ... Looks like Max has a rival. And it's Zoey. As in, the co-ordinator Zoey. Seems far-fetched? I figured it could happen... I mean, she is already a top coordinator and had slowly learnt to appreciate the more conventional types of battling too. Plus, we haven't heard of her since Sinnoh, so she could have achieved, done and realised a number of things** **by then.**

 **4) Ash did NOT get a heracronite. Lame? Please hear me out when I say that this story, in essence, is derivative of the anime till XYZ. Thus, I can't allow Ash to get ridiculously powerful, get 5-6 mega evolutions etc. I might go and give him a freaking legendary at this rate.**

 **He will grow and become strong, but he WON'T become god-level or even Cynthia level. And even most (if not all) champions don't have more than one mega stone even in the games.**

 **5) As for how I justified Ash not finding one... Ridiculously lame? Maybe... but have you ever tried to catch that Salamence SOS encounter from a 1% encounter rate Bagon in Pokémon sun and moon games? Well... a mega stone should be rare and hard to get. And Heracross are practically everywhere in Johto and exist in Kalos and Sinnoh at multiple routes. They can also be found in Hoenn and Alola. So.**

 **6) Did you like what I did with Solidad? Did you like Drew winning the Aqua Ribbon and defeating Solidad in what would possibly be his last chance? BTW, how was Drew vs Zoey? Do you think I can pull off decent contest battles?**

 **7) This is something small... but did anyone notice what I did with Blaziken? As in, when he fainted, he was automatically pulled by his pokéball rather than lying down 'swirly-eyed' by the anime? What did you think of it?**

 **This is one small adjustment that I am going to make... I have a tinfoil theory about pokéballs in this universe, but I don't want to bore you guys. So, let's suffice to say that all pokéballs have some sort of connection with the pokémon who they respond to. When that pokémon is in a pinch (really close to sustaining an unsafe level of damage) something will activate to cause the ball to pull the mon automatically.**

 **This is a big reason why pokémon let themselves be caught and why no mon dies in a battle.**

 **Still, if I make any more such assumptions, I might have to simply switch the 'friendship' genre tag to 'fantasy'...**

 **Anyway, please review. I'm open and willing to read your suggestions... even if they are negative. So please do not hesitate if you have something to say.**

 **Thanks!**


	6. 4

_CHAPTER 4_

"Totodile!" Totodile snatched Ash's hat and danced with it firmly perched on his head. "Toto-totodile!"

"Hey! I've only just got it back from Gible!" Ash whined.

"Toto-toto-dile?" The water Pokémon asked teasingly, and started dancing at an arm's length to Ash. The said trainer squeezed his eyes shut.

"Man, I've had enough for today! I'm tired! Can I please play with you some other time?"

Totodile assumed a hurt expression and looked towards his trainer so dejectedly that Ash couldn't help but give in. "Okay then, another round of tag it is." _Sometimes it feels like these guys are my trainers._ As soon as the signal was given, Ash pounced towards the little croc hoping to catch him off guard and nip this game in its bud. This wasn't going to happen though... Not when Ash had done such a great job training all his eligible water types in Aqua Jet. Totodile set off flying towards the thin tree cover which led to the lake with Ash in hot pursuit.

"Totodile!" Ash said while running, "Your Aqua Jet is much faster than last year!" Though Ash was not in a mood to play tag again this early in the morning, he was still pleased by how much all his Pokémon had grown while he found them new teammates. He was glad that his decision to take professor Oak's advice before he set off to Hoenn was paying off so well...

 _"I don't know professor," Ash sadly said, "I want to see new Pokémon and catch them too... But I don't want to leave anyone behind. I'll already be without Brock and Misty."_

 _"Ash, for trainers like you, this is a necessary sacrifice to make." Professor replied, "Tell me something: do you think you can help Cyndaquil or Bayleef anymore were you to keep training them?"_

 _Ash promptly replied, "of course I can! Both of them aren't fully evolved yet."_

 _Professor Oak sighed, "Remember you are taking to someone who has researched Pokémon for most of his life son." He then asked, "Will your training make them evolve? Is that how your Kingler evolved? Charizard? Bayleef? Pidgeotto?"_ _Ash had to think about it._

 _"Well, honestly I was surprised about Kingler. I hadn't even trained him much, and I did not really use him a lot too. But if he hadn't evolved, I'd have lost the match." Furrowing his brow in concentration, he recalled. "Charizard evolved because he wanted to beat Aerodactyl, Bayleef to save me, Pidgeot to save that flock... so do they evolve only when they really need the extra power?"_

 _"No Ash. Pokémon evolve when they are of the right age and ready both physically and mentally. Why do some Pokémon evolve even if they have never battled before? Training has nothing to do with the first part and isn't the only thing that helps with the second." He let that sink in, then went on, "Kingler evolved because he was able to grow healthy at the ranch and you trusted him to finish the match. The trainer's job is to help their Pokémon grow. To help them perfect their abilities and moves and to make them stronger. Not just physically... a trainer needs to help their Pokémon become responsible, confident and mature. Now answer my earlier question: Do you think you can help Cyndaquil and Bayleef grow if you take them with you?"_

 _"Cyndaquil has learned to use his fire type moves and become braver. I think he's all right." Ash mused. "And Bayleef... well with how stubborn she was as a Chikorita, I think she has grown a lot too."_ _He chuckled. "But she won't like this one bit."_

 _"Correct. You have helped them as much as you could, and they have really grown a lot... so much that they can grow up well enough by themselves now. In fact, Bayleef needs to stay away from you for precisely the same reason." Oak explained. "Trainers are like parents for Pokémon. They have to help them learn to walk, but they need not be there all the time. The time spent away from your parents is an important part of development for both humans and Pokémon. This is why you are on a journey in the first place."_

"Totodile?"

Ash was bought out of his stupor by a worried Totodile. "Nah it's nothing. I was just feeling proud of how much you all have grown. Remember when we met in Johto, you were so short! And even with your Aqua Jet, I was still as fast. You've really grown a lot buddy. You all have."

Totodile stood up straighter, pleased with the compliment. Ash took the chance to snag the cap off his Pokémon's head. "But you still need to improve your concentration!" Ash stuck his tongue out and ran towards the lake. Before he could run past it and reach the lab though, his water-type from Johto tackled him in the water.

"Aaaah!" Ash's shout alerted half the ranch, and a sizable amount of his Pokémon started converging in the area while charging attacks to fend off whatever had caused their trainer trouble. What they did not expect to find was him splashing and playing water fight with Totodile however.

' **Should** _have known,'_ Snivy complained to Bulbasaur, ' **And** _when I was enjoying the sun and all.'_

' **At** _least it will keep the other cubs out of my sepals for a while,'_ Bulbasaur replied while gesturing with his vines. Indeed, Oshawott, Corphish, Pikachu and Gible had already joined the two in their game.

' **Technically** _you both are cubs too,'_ came a voice from overhead them. Looking up, the two grass types found Sceptile coolly chewing a twig on a branch of the tree they had retreated under, ' **Why** _don't you go and play with Ash too sometimes?'_

 **'I** _am not a-'_ Snivy replied indignantly, but was cut off by Bulbasaur. ' **So,** _what if we are? I know you didn't do such things when you were little too.'_ Bulbasaur was not foolish enough to behave like an adult when he knew he wasn't. He liked the way he was anyway and didn't want to grow all large and heavy like Snorlax. **'I** _am a grown up even if I'm not an adult,'_ he stated proudly.

 **'Of** _course, you are, ambassador of the Oak ranch.'_ Sceptile nodded his head slightly. He respected Bulbasaur for his decision to stay a kid. Even if Sceptile himself had always wanted to evolve, he sometimes still missed being a Treecko, when his brain was too small to process complicated things and the only thing he worried about was to be strong in battle, to be able to keep Taillow from shouting in his ears and the like.

Snivy simply huffed in annoyance. _She_ was the only grown up Pokémon from Unova, thank you very much. Of course, she looked up to Leavanny somewhat and didn't bother much with Krookodile and Unfezant, but the rest of the gang wouldn't stay in line if not for her, Ash included. Even though Iris was a bigger kid than him most of the time, she was right about that at least. But she sullenly let Sceptile get away with his words. _Why do adults think all kids are the same? Even if I am still little, I am not immature!_

' **Sceptile**!' Charizard roared nearby. **'It's** _time! We'll have to extract Ash from the lake or the kids will end up skipping today's training!_ '

' **Oh**... _I almost missed it.'_ Sceptile squinted up his eyes and checked the position of the sun. ' **It's** _time alright. I'm going to call the others. Bulbasaur, can you get the kids ready?_ '

' **I** _don't think it is going to be possible,'_ chuckled Swellow, who had landed with Staraptor and the three Kalos Pokémon. ' **They** _are having too much fun.'_ Laughing, the most energetic of Ash's birds whooped and flew towards the play-fighting group, which had regrouped into two teams by then, and started dodging past their water guns and splashes while taunting them. Soon enough, everyone was trying to pin her down and she was having the time of her life.

' **And** _she's supposed to be a big girl,'_ Snivy muttered while rolling her eyes.

' **But** _then, Pikachu is supposed to be near-adulthood as well,'_ Charizard noted. ' **Not** _to mention Ash himself... What do they call it in humans? Teenage right?_ '

' **Not** _to sound foolish or something,'_ Talonflame interjected, **'But** _I rather have Ash always stay the way he is. There's no reason for him not to keep enjoying himself. He still gets by well. And wasn't his childishness, love for playing with us and always enjoying himself a reason why a lot of us loved it with him when we were little? That was certainly true for me when I was just a Fletching.'_ All of Ash's senior Pokémon agreed to that (barring Sceptile of course).

Charizard chuckled, ' **Yeah,** _but it was really hard to acknowledge him when I finally grew up. He was much worse back then and didn't battle as well as he does now.'_

' **Tell** _me about it...'_ Staraptor shook his head. ' **From** _what I've heard around here, you scared most of the Johto crew from growing up through your story.'_

' **Yeah** _and even Bayleef evolving back then wasn't enough to get them to appreciate it,'_ Sceptile agreed. **'It** _was Donphan who finally did the trick. But I think we're missing the point here. Let's get everyone ready to train'_

' **But** _how to round up the kids and now Swellow?'_ Bulbasaur pointed them to the root of all that discussion.

When no one spoke up for some time, Noivern timidly suggested, ' **I** _think I might have an idea.'_

' **Go** _on, for I sure don't have any.'_ Charizard shrugged. Hawlucha however went slightly wide-eyed and cautioned, ' **Cover** _your ears everyone! Quick, quick!_ ' Talonflame quickly complied as she got the hint. Of course, Hawlucha knew Noivern better than anyone bar Ash, having practically raised him. The others weren't so quick in the uptake, and instantly regretted it.

Noivern used BOOMBURST.

' **Next** _time,'_ Bulbasaur winced, **'I'll** _simply remember to ask Tracey for help.'_

' **What**?' Asked Charizard.

' **What?'** Asked Sceptile.

Hawlucha posed haughtily and smirked, while Talonflame merely rolled her eyes.

Training for Ash's Pokémon was never a quiet affair, and his presence only made the situation worse: this being the first time he was there to personally watch them train in almost a year, almost all his partners were bursting with eagerness to show off everything they had learnt at the ranch. It took everything in Infernape's, Sceptile's and Buizel's power to keep them from burning themselves out even before Ash came to see them personally, and, of course, to keep the collateral damage at a minimum.

 **'I** _have to give it to Ash,'_ Infernape huffed after he shot down some errant leaves from Bayleef's newly-mastered Magical leaf attack before they could cut through the branches of the nearby trees. _'This is one heck of speed and attack training.'_ He used quick attack to get himself near Leavanny, whose razor leaf was getting too close for comfort to Kingler and Corphish, who were sparring with their crabhammers unaware.

 **'Show-offs** , _all of 'em,'_ Buizel scoffed and then urgently countered the stray flames from Charizard's flamethrower. **'Even** _him.'_ Sceptile shot a mild bullet seed towards Heracross, who was trying to suck sap out of Bulbasaur's bulb. **'Not** _the time, bug! Concentrate on your training or I'll make you spar with Charizard AND Pignite!'_ This caught the bug-type's attention and he quickly backed off.

' **You** _really take your taskmaster duty seriously,'_ Buizel observed. ' **Why** _though?'_ He then added somewhat glumly. **'It's** _not like Ash is going to start battling with us again anytime soon.'_

' **You** _know this isn't the case Buizel,'_ Infernape scolded. ' **Even** _if Ash has taken it as a challenge to win a league with a completely new team, he still needs us for what lies on the other side of it. And we all need to keep getting_ stronger'

' **Surely** _the Champions League isn't as tough as you are making it out to be.'_ Buizel noted while jumping and shooting a sonic boom to block a stray dragon pulse from hitting one of Staraptor and Hawlucha, whose training regime was looking more and more like a fistfight (wingfight?).

' **You** _have fought an Elite-4 Pokémon before kid_ ,' Sceptile reminded him. **'I,** _Infernape and Torterra have too. Admittedly I was still a Grovyle back then, but I am not ashamed to say that Drake's Altaria really creamed me.'_

 **'Flint's** _Infernape did me too after a fashion... and I was an Infernape that time. You have seen that match through your Pokéball, haven't you? And don't even remind me of how scary it was to battle Cynthia's Garchomp with Paul.'_

' **So** _Buizel, I need to make sure everyone, and I mean EVERYONE,'_ Sceptile shot another bullet seed to break Scraggy and Totodile who were locked in a ridiculous battle of leer and scary face, ' _Is ready when our chance to get some real action finally comes.'_

Ash was currently overlooking his Kalos Pokémon as they adjusted into rhythm with the others. This was almost as rigorous as they had trained for the league and they were fairly impressed by the fact that all his Pokémon had kept up this routine for more than a few years now on their own. They all were very near the best they could be at their present ages. Talonflame was having to boost herself with flame charge to keep up with Swellow and Noivern was still not getting the hang of draco meteor. Ash had silently asked Charizard and Torterra to handle the stray attacks, though his youngest Pokémon in age was still having trouble to generate enough power to actually be dangerous.

Hawlucha and Staraptor were equally matched and Ash suspected that having no one to practice his close-combat and other contact moves was what caused his Sinnoh flying type to not develop his attacking style much. Before Hawlucha came to the ranch, he had been, for lack of a better word, a misfit. Ash couldn't let him practice with his other physical attackers due to his typing, and all his other birds were either fast hitters or Noctowl, who could fit in anywhere really. Gliscor was the only Pokémon who had been able to partner the bird pokémon on even terms, and even he was a better flyer due to all the training he got away from him in Sinnoh. For the last year, Ash had made him spar with Charizard and it had not been easy.

Staraptor's flying capacity had improved remarkably however, as he had stubbornly kept training with Swellow, Unfezant and Noctowl. Not to mention, all his training with the fire type must have improved his dodging and endurance to great levels. Ash wouldn't be surprised if he turned out to be the best flyer of his specie when he grew up completely.

Hawlucha though was perfect for training with him. He had as much experience as the bird due to his past as the forest champion. Moreover, their styles were almost similar, and both could fight in the air. Not to mention, Ash hadn't really had many chances to check out Hawlucha's flying abilities in Kalos due to him having Talonflame and later Noivern, and it wasn't half-bad. Ash assumed Hawlucha as a specie were supposed to be really fast in air.

Samuel Oak had been observing Ash train his Pokémon from afar. He had hoped to find something, anything for them to improve upon so that he could find a way to start advising the trainer and filling some gaps in his knowledge. What he hadn't expected was him and his Pokémon to be training so well... _Such discipline, such vigour, such power..._ Was that how his pokémon usually trained in the ranch? He hadn't had a reason to watch them train before and was very, very highly impressed. Even his younger Pokémon were putting in a decent shift.

Samuel sighed. He wanted to help Ash, he really did, but he didn't know where to _start._ He couldn't simply walk up to him and boldly proclaim, "I think you do not know a lot of things every trainer should. Come with me. I will tell you." That would be absurd and rude. He had hoped to find an opening by watching him train, and all he could think of was how well Ash was doing.

In that moment, Oak realised yet again that he was many things but _not_ a teacher. Ask him tips on anything related to Pokémon and he would provide plenty. Ask him a question, and if he didn't know the answer, most likely no one else did. Give him a topic and ask him to deliver a one-hour lecture? Two-hour? Ten? No problem. _But how does someone teach a person something?_ _Maybe Samson could help._ Samson was, of course, his brother and the principal of a Pokémon Academy in Alola, and might have an idea of how to find out what all Ash needs to be taught, how to convince him that he needs to, and how to actually _teach_ him.

He entered his lab and went straight towards his videophone sitting in the furthest corner. His call was picked by a man who was basically a tanned and long-haired version of himself, as far as looks go at least.

"Hello Samuel!" Samson Oak greeted. "Munna! Cresselia! Staravia! Praise the moon and stars, as I was just about to call you!"

Samuel pointedly ignored his brother's abysmal attempt at a pun using Pokémon names. "How such things work. Is there something you need?"

Samson replied. "You see, I wanted to teach Kukui's class about regional variants, so I wanted some Kanto region pokémon... Exeggutor, Vulpix, Marowak, Meowth, Raichu or Ratatta..."

"I do have an unclaimed Vulpix egg with me-"

"Abra! Kadabra! Alakazam! That would be magical! I can make this a lesson about baby pokémon as well as regional variants."

Oak sighed. "Tell me one thing though, how do you plan to get this egg? It's not like I can catch it in a pokéball and then transfer it to you now, can I?"

"Ah... Okay then. I can wait till it hatches. By the way, is there any way I can help you?" His brother asked.

"There is in fact. You see, there's one trainer..."

Meanwhile, Delia was furiously working on her sewing machine in her bedroom. Ash, of course, had ruined almost every piece of clothing he had in Kalos. Again. It frustrated her no end how the boy managed to get so many tears and scrapes in even his spare clothing. Furthermore, the only reason he ever gave her was "Fell into another pit dug by team Rocket." She shook her head. _No doubt he wasn't lying about this at least,_ she told herself partly to ease the fears she will always have regarding his safety on the road. _I've seen them myself and they're harmless. In fact, they might just be friendly practical jokers for all they have managed to steal from him till now._

Team Rocket was always a part of her calls from him, no matter where he was. And from what she had deduced from the stories, they were mostly the reason why Ash and co. were able to solve a lot of problems. Even if Ash was still convinced that they were trying to steal Pikachu. Delia chuckled softly but then glared at the ruined clothing she was trying so desperately to salvage. _Oh, the collateral damage..._

She shook her head. She will need to take Ash shopping right this instant if he were to have anything other than his pyjamas to wear while he was home. He had shot up in inches in Kalos after all.

"Mimey!" She called, "can you get me Ash from the ranch?"

"Mime-mime!"

"Okay then." Delia lifted herself up from her workbench and let herself lie down on her bed for just a little while. _If we're going out, might as well find out if I need to buy anything else. I_ have _been feeding Ash for three days now..._

Ash was never glad to be invited to a shopping trip, that was for sure. "Aw mom! Can't you go out by yourself?"

Delia put her hands on her hips. "No mister, you are coming along. It's you who needs the new clothes."

"I'm fine mom, I already have enough to last me forever!" Ash whined. "And I was enjoying some quality time with all my pokémon! We don't get enough time together already!"

"Honestly Ash, I can't let you keep wearing a lot of _those_ clothes even for a day longer," she muttered. Seeing Ash give her a mulish look, she shifted gears. "Look Ash, I know you want to spend as much time with your friends before you leave, but what about me?" She said with a weak, quivering voice. "Since you've returned, it's either been your Pokémon or your other friends." Of course, her words were completely genuine, but she also knew that guilt tripping Ash was surely going to work. "Even when you're around here, It's always with Samuel and Tracy. And Gary before he left. Can't you take some time out for your mom? Please?"

Ash had his head lowered by then. _Jeez she's right. I should not have ignored her so._ He hugged her gently without his gaze leaving his feet. "Mom I- I'm sorry."

"So, will you come with me? You don't have to, you know."

"Sure, I'll be glad to." Ash smiled, "It has been a while since we have done something together isn't it?"

"Okay then!" Delia exclaimed cheerfully. "Let's go to Viridian City! We'll have ice cream when we're done there!"

"Really?" That certainly got Ash interested. "All right!" He pumped his fist into the air.

The rest of Ash's fifth day back from Kalos was thus spent with her mom, MisterMime and, of course, Pikachu. They walked all the way to Viridian, simply enjoying having each other for company and making small talk. Even when the shopping part came, Ash was surprised by how different shopping with her was compared to doing it with rest of her 'girl' friends (Ash blushed at the implication of his thoughts). For one, she didn't run to every single shop of female apparel, perfume and other stuff like his friends, and was very quick to choose what she wanted. She worked with the brisk efficiency of a working woman and knew her way around the streets as if she was born on them. Even Ash's clothes were picked up fairly quickly... Mom said that she thought he has almost reached his full height, so may as well have a few extra clothes to keep back home for emergencies.

He didn't care much as long as he had something to put on daily, but his mom's choices were often his own. _I have been wearing clothes sewn by her since I became a trainer though... it was only to be expected._ None of what they picked were suited for traveling however. When he asked about it, Delia merely shrugged and picked up a large piece of white cloth with light blue stripes running along its length. "Well I've got to maintain the tradition of sewing your traveling clothes by myself isn't it? After all, they are something to remember me by when you are away..." She winked.

Once their shopping spree finally concluded (after a considerable amount of time was spent at the groceries with Ash trying to beg Delia to get everything which caught his eyes/stomach), mother and son finally made their way to the berry markets to treat themselves with some ice cream. That was when a voice caught Ash's attention.

"Come one, come all! Try our new Pecha-berry flavour ice creams and win a trip to summer paradise Alola! I repeat, try our..."

Ash alerted his mom to the voice and tried to follow it to the source. Indeed, a tall, lanky man with a balding head was standing over a lottery machine in front of a small ice cream stall attached to a berry shop. Upon noticing the berries, Pikachu hopped off Ash's shoulder and went closer to get a good sniff. Seemingly satisfied by the berries, the electric mouse pokémon gave a pleased "Pi-ka!" and ran towards the ice cream counter.

"Seems like Pikachu has made the decision for us," Delia chuckled as she, Ash and Mimey followed the rodent to the counter. "Yeah, the berries seem fresh enough," Ash noted.

After jostling through a pretty large crowd, the little party finally reached the front. Ever the adventurous type, Ash and Pikachu went for the leppa berry flavour while Delia ordered a simple Oran berry flavour for both herself and Mimey just to stay safe; this was the first time she was trying out this shop after all.

Ash and Pikachu finished their ice-creams with such an astonishing speed that they were able to get over the brain freeze even before Delia and Mimey could finish theirs. "Man, it was so awesome!" Ash concluded.

"Chaaa!" His partner agreed.

"You should really have tried the Pecha berries mom!"

"I'm alright Ash," Delia assured him. "Our ice cream was just fine, was it not Mimey?"

"Mime-mime." The barrier Pokémon nodded.

"So, what are we waiting for! Let's try out our luck and win ourselves a trip to Alola!" Ash exclaimed vigorously. "Pi-kachu!"

After standing in yet another line, they finally reached the lottery machine. The man who was operating it was dressed up in a striking crimson jacket covering a standard farmer's garb. He also had very old-fashioned, frameless round glasses which were perched on his tiny nose. "So, you had two Pechas huh?" He asked while checking their bill. "Okay then. You get two spins of the machine. If you get a green ball, you win a 3 days and 4 nights trip to Alola." Ash rubbed his palms in anticipation.

"Alright! Let's win this, Pikachu."

"Pi?"

"You seem awfully confident, young man," the vendor snarked confidently. There was only one green ball in around a hundred red ones, after all. Ash merely shrugged. "I've got awesome luck, you know? I've won so many lotteries during my Pokémon journeys that I have lost count."

"Piika?" Pikachu asked Ash in a very high-pitched voice, as if pointing out something idiotic. Delia teased, "And how many of your such lottery wins were against your two friends with a Meowth?"

Of all the things she had expected when she said it, Ash looking as if she had pressed a sensitive nerve wasn't the likeliest. Her jaw slackened. "Don't tell me..." she muttered as shook her head at her son's gullibility. Pikachu simply broke into a laughing fit. That managed to get a rise out of Ash however.

"Traitor!" He glared at his laughing starter. "Just you wait buddy. I'll show you alright." That said, Ash gave the machine a heavy spin with everything he had. The wheel kept turning for ages without showing any signs of slowing down, before finally losing speed and eventually stopping. Ash and the others looked on with bated breaths.

A red ball came out of the machine.

"Aw man!" Ash groaned as he began pulling his hair in frustration. The vendor pointed out with his eyes gleaming with amusement, "You still have a turn left young master."

"I'll surely win this time." Ash reached towards his head to turn his hat backwards, realised he wasn't wearing one, groaned and turned his attention to the lottery machine. The wheel was already spinning however. Ash's eyes widened as Mimey gave him a sheepish smile.

This time when the machine stopped, a green ball came rolling out of it. The three human and their two pokémon simply stared at each other dumbfounded for a moment as the result sank in. Then all hell broke loose.

"Alright! We win!" Ash posed. "Pi-pikachu!" His partner joined him.

Mistermime simply gave her mistress a smug smile.

"Alright folks!" The Vendor addressed the people who were still waiting for their turn on the wheel. "We have a winner! The lottery's over!" This bought about a wave of angry mutterings from the large crowd, which the man had to endure as he dispersed the miffed customers. By the time he was done, the Ketchums and their Pokémon were done celebrating as well.

"So where is this Alola anyway?" Ash asked. "I've never heard about it on my journeys."

"As far as I know," Delia supplied, "It is a famous tourist location with a tropical climate and a lot of beaches. It is almost as far from here as Unova."

"Really? Awesome!" Ash looked towards Pikachu. "Bet there will be a lot of pokémon we've never seen before like Unova!"

"Pi-ka Pichu Pikachu!" Pikachu seemingly reminded Ash something while sparking his cheeks slightly

"Oh yeah." Ash turned to face the vendor. "Is there a Pokémon league there?" Delia gasped as the implications of that simple question became apparent to her. _Oh no, please don't let it be another Unova situation. He has barely been here this time._ Delia thought to herself as she recalled how Ash had become fascinated with new pokémon the last time they went abroad for a vacation, and had ended up jumping ship and setting off on yet another journey.

The blessed vendor came to her rescue however. "I may be wrong but they don't, as fast as I know anyway. You see, the people there are generally laid back and not a lot of them train pokémon to fight."

Ash sobered up on hearing that. "Okay, maybe It isn't the next stop for our pokémon journey..." He brushed Pikachu's fur absently. He perked up soon however. "So what! We still have enough time to have a lot of fun, and catch as many new pokémon as we can!"

Pikachu quickly caught his brother's mood. Of course, he was more interested in simply having as much fun as he could, but he loved making new friends and meeting new pokémon as much as Ash did. "Pikapikachu Pikapi!" He cheered.

"Okay then," Delia continued with much more enthusiasm. _This time there is no chance of Ash's pokémon journey coming between us! Finally, I'll be able to get him to relax and think about something other than pokémon and food._ "What all is covered in the tour? When can we go?"

The vendor explained the lottery winners that their tour package included a stay in a deluxe room at his close friend's resort in Hau'oli Beachfront on the Melemele island, their meals, a ferry and a tour guide to show them notable sights of the Akala island on their second day and the Ula-Ula island, the Poni island and the Exeggutor island on the third day. Also included were two return tickets from Viridian city to Hau'oli city. They were allowed to choose any date from day after tomorrow to the last date of next month. Visa wasn't an issue: though the Alolans were a secretive bunch, they apparently had great relationship with the Kantonian and the Johtonian aristocracy; so good in fact that any traveller from the two nations was eligible for a visa on arrival.

Ash expressed his desire to go there as soon as they could and Delia was only too glad to accept. Thus, two humans, a Pikachu and a Mistermime walked away with what was supposed to be a simple shopping trip with two tickets for a flight to Alola dated for the morning after tomorrow, a reservation in a resort having some great facilities for rest and relaxation and some contacts to help them through the unknown region. Not that _that_ was an issue with Ash around. (Delia had never been told about his impeccable sense of direction though. But admittedly, he _had_ performed better in Kalos... or was it due to most of the routes passing through Lumiose city...?)

Anyway, the little entourage couldn't have been happier.

The Ketchums decided to finish off their packing for this sudden trip by the night, as both mother and son had work to do in the next day: Delia was planning to sew Ash a couple of new T-shirts from the fabric she had gotten from Viridian City which would be comfortable in the warm climate, as all his recent clothing had been made with colder regions of Sinnoh, Unova and Kalos in mind. Ash, meanwhile, was hoping to spend some time with his Pokémon, convince them that it was just a holiday and make sure his Kalos pokémon were feeling comfortable along with the rest of his team.

When they broke the news to Professor Oak in the next morning, he was almost glad over the turn of events. He surprised the two of them by revealing that his brother was a principal at a pokémon academy in Hau'oli City and asking them to deliver a Vulpix egg to him. He also asked Ash to explore the school as much as he could and try to learn as much as possible about Alola, their Pokémon and their traditions. He _was_ secretly hoping that Ash would end up staying in Alola for some time... even though his brother lived there, Oak knew next to nothing about the islands. The Alolans were the most secretive of all people he had ever worked with, but Ash had never disappointed him before when it came to finding out about a region. Although he again felt the all too familiar guilt over not being able to teach what Ash needed to learn and not even wanting to stop him from leaving Pallet yet again, he vowed that he would call Samson later to ask him to judge Ash, and to hopefully convince him to attend his school if Samson thinks it will help the boy.

After this little business was sorted, Ash went to meet up with his Pokémon at the ranch. He explained them the situation, promised them he'll be back and asked if any of his non-Kalos pokémon wanted a beach holiday. Oshowatt, Totodile, Scraggy and Corphish seemed interested, but Bulbasaur and Snivy covertly made them realise that they should leave Ash be for Mrs. Ketchum's sake.

Although Hawlucha and Talonflame didn't seem to mind Ash leaving them behind much, Noivern became dejected as Ash had made a vital mistake: he had, in all his eagerness, failed to mention the absence of a pokémon league in Alola. All of his pokémon were thus treating this little tour as the advent of Ash's next journey.

' **Why** _does he have to leave me?'_ Noivern asked Hawlucha sadly. The fighter found himself in an awkward situation as he didn't fully understand Ash's reasons himself, but Charizard came to his rescue.

 **'I** _assure you it's much better this way,'_ he said in a voice which was loud enough to carry over to Talonflame as well. ' **You** _don't know how awkward it was for me when I travelled with Ash in Johto.'_ Charizard then went about describing all the underwhelming battles he had (since people did not take anyone seriously unless they had badges of the local gyms, and apparently it is much easier to underestimate Ash given his childish nature), how Ash had begun annihilating new trainers' teams of rattatas and pidgeys with him, how he had failed to find even a single decent opponent for Charizard to battle with and how he had finally stopped using him altogether to give more chances to his weaker teammates.

 **'Honestly,** _all of you guys are much stronger than I was back then.'_ Charizard stated modestly, surprising the three, though no other pokémon paid any mind to his pep talk: Apparently, every one of them had received some version of it when they were left behind for the first time. **'It** _would be even more awkward for you. Besides, here you will have us to keep you on your toes and give you some exciting battles.'_

Torterra confidently added from his resting place inside the tree cover they were standing nearby, **'It's** _only a matter of an year or two before Ash wins a league and gets into the champions' league. He will need all of us then at our full strength. We will make sure we are ready when he does.'_ When explained that way, no pokémon was left with any complains whatsoever. The effect of their training was clearly visible on each of Ash's pokémon after all.

Noivern still had a question though. ' **That's** _all fine then, but why does Pikachu not count into this?_ '

Gliscor chuckled from his perch on Torterra's tree. **'Believe** _me, you don't want to go his route. Pikachu is so desperate to keep traveling with Ash that he travels throughout most regions while wearing power-absorbers on his paws. Don't get me wrong, I love Ash lots, but I don't want to lose my power till the league just to be able to travel with the boy. Not when I've got through so much to be worthy of it.'_ Gliscor then, without any invitation, started telling the newbies about how easily he used to become afraid as a Gligar, how everyone had considered him weak, how he had conquered his fear of flying when Ash was in danger, and how Ash had finally let him evolve.

' **He** _did a good job distracting them,'_ Torkoal mused. Snorlax merely shrugged; he had only just woken up and was still feeling too sluggish to care.

With everything taken care of, with new training regimes explained and with Hawlucha also added to the elite group of 'Taskmasters' that already contained Sceptile, Buizel and Infernape, Ash finally left his pokémon (except Pikachu) behind to head for a short vacation and some fun at the beaches. Little did he know however, as he set his foot in the aircraft on the next day, that fate was carrying him from Lumiose to Melemele on a different trial after not even a week spent at home.

 **Author's Note:**

 **Thanks for reading through. I hope you aren't** ** _too_** **pissed off by my not letting Ash stay at home for as long as Oak would have liked. Especially as I baited you guys into believing that was going to happen at first. In my defence, Kukui, and not Oak, is supposed to be the mentor in my fic. Anyways, if Oak was capable of being a good mentor to Ash, he would have done it till now. I don't think researchers are as good at teaching as specialised teachers. Anyways...**

 **1) What did you feel about how I treated pokémon interactions? Do you find my treatment of pre-evolved forms as kids acceptable? Was my argument of maturity and level of brain development being different things okay? (as in Bulbasaur and Swellow)**

 **2) Did you like the training section?**

 **3) The first appearance of Samson Oak and I already suck at writing him. I find him horrible even in the Anime, and his brand of puns simply don't occur to me. I** ** _still_** **tried though... should I keep doing him this way, or should I tone him down too like I did with Cilan?**

 **4) Did you like my theories on how Ash's Pokémon react to being left behind and what drives them to train? Were any of Ash's pokémon out of character?**

 **5) What do you think of Oak's advice to Ash when he left for Hoenn with only his Pikachu?**

 **6) What do you think about Pikachu using power reducing items just so that he could travel with Ash and why other pokémon don't want any of it?**

 **I'd like to hear all your opinions on all of these points. And if this fic is not turning out how you want it to, please give me a chance while I build up Ash in Alola. I admit I have made some mistakes till now due to not planning earlier for a lot of things that happened in the previous chapters, but I hope having the framework of an episode to work on per every chapter henceforth will help me get my act together.**

 **BTW, the fic** ** _might_** **become episodic from now on. I'll try to keep things interesting however, and try to make sense of some things about the SM anime which I don't agree with, but you still have my warning. So, on that note... onwards to Alola!**


	7. 5

**Author's Note:**

 **Firstly, I'd like to apologise to you guys for not responding to a lot of your reviews from earlier chapters. In my defence, I have been using the Android app to send PMs, and I've only recently found out that that feature wasn't working for me for some reason. Please do not let it deter you from reviewing, as it helps me understand what you guys want from the story and to improve myself. Secondly, this is my version of Sun and Moon anime episode 1. It's not exactly a carbon copy, though no events from the episode have been changed. Hope you like it :)**

 _CHAPTER 5_

It was night-time when their aircraft finally landed on the runway of the Kahuna Situsema International airport, which was apparently the only such facility for the four major islands of Alola to share. As soon as Ash, Delia, Mimey and Pikachu set their feet outside, they were hit by a draft of humid but pleasantly cool air.

"Wow... I can smell the sea already." Ash closed his eyes and took a deep breath, with Pikachu almost imitating him. Delia looked around. Although she wasn't much of a traveller, she had seen her fair share of airports, so nothing about this one struck her as special. Nevertheless, the amount of open space available around the rather small building (which seemed almost completely made of red sandstones as if carved right out of the ground) seemed to emphasise just how much this region might be connected to its environment. It was rare to see governments have so much land available and not encroach upon it after all.

"Look over there Pikachu!" Ash's voice bought Delia out of her reverie, as she turned along with Mimey and Pikachu to look at what Ash was pointing towards. "These seem to be some new bird Pokémon!" Indeed, what they were looking at was a flock of small birds with a pretty black and white coloured plumage, a brilliant red coloured patch on their crests and rather long and pointed black beaks. They were flying in a V-shaped formation, with a larger bird with a mostly similar colour scheme but a beak painted in a reddish gradient leading them, and probably providing the rest of its flock with a tailwind to help it move faster.

 _Of course, the first thing he would notice is a Pokémon._ Delia shook her head. The little birds were pretty however. "Awesome! You know what this means, right buddy?"

Pikachu nodded, pointed at Ash's belt and made an imitation of throwing a pokéball. Then of course, he went on to perform his part in their trademark pose, with Ash matching him beat for beat.

"Alright! I'm gonna catch some new Pokémon!"

"Pi-Pikachu!"

Unbeknownst to the two, every passenger who had left their flight was gaping at them. Delia looked at them with reddening cheeks and smiled weakly. _How did I manage to forget his habit of embarrassing me in front of strangers!_ She decided she had been away from her child for way too long. Ash had always been hyperactive and mischievous as a kid, and he used to absolutely love embarrassing her in public. She wasn't any better however; she had exacted a lot of revenge on him after he began traveling. _The underwear joke is coming back mister Ketchum._

The two finally exited the airport and were driven to their resort in a caddie. Even with the brief glimpses they got of the largest city in Alola, they were surprised by how clean and open everything was. Even the markets had wider pavements than was strictly necessary, which helped them feel inviting even with what she supposed had to be an extremely large number of tourists crowding them, probably looking for souvenirs. It also helped that there were almost no engine-powered vehicles; indeed, the closest thing they had seen were Tauros-carts.

The locals were quite easy to make out from the tourists. For one, they seemed to fit right into the vibrant, colourful attires which, try as they might, most foreigners simply couldn't pull off without looking comical. Even while doing things like managing shops, there was always a relaxed aura about them, as if everything they did was at their own pace. It reminded her of Pallet Town in a way, something which she had never expected from a city before. Most of them had slightly tanned skins, which was to be expected really, with all the sun. What stood out, however, was the sheer diversity of hair colour; indeed, there were as many green, purple and other such rarer kinds as there were the routine blacks and blondes. The biggest difference they had with the tourists was, however, that every one of them looked to have a pokémon by their sides. In fact, if not for the tourists, the pokémon on the streets might have outnumbered the humans. She took another moment to thank God for absence of a league in Alola.

As for Ash, he was eagerly looking all around, trying to spot a new pokémon. Even with how well travelled he was, the presence of so many of them on the streets was a rare treat. And it was not as if all pokémon were small and cute like Pikachus or Eevees; he had already noticed Alakazams, Primapes and even a Slowking walk beside what had to be their trainers. Although not nearly as many times as he would have liked, he did manage to catch some glimpses of unknown pokémon too. There were some black, Ratatta-like ones running covertly in the shadows of the travellers, most likely to snatch food from an unsuspecting tourist's bag; a few dark pokémon who looked somewhat like a Meowth lurking in the alleys and near the trashcans, long yellow and brown-coloured creatures with lithe bodies and rather large teeth; a black and red cat who was eating some berries off an old lady's stand... Ash was sure in for a treat. Delia glanced once at her son's almost drooling face and chuckled. _It is going to be hard to get him to think about anything else on this tour. Oh well..._

Within a matter of minutes, they were driven to an impressively big resort and shown their rooms. They were told to enjoy and explore Melemele as they wished tomorrow, as there wasn't much to see beyond the beaches, Iki town and the Ruins of Conflict on this island. Once they were to themselves, Delia suggested that they better deliver Samuel's egg tomorrow as well, as they were going to be too occupied after that.

The next morning was a delightful one for Ash. Determined to enjoy to his fullest, he had pestered his mom and Mimey till they gave in and joined him for a game of beach volleyball. It was an enjoyable experience, since Ash and Pikachu were extremely fit and Delia wasn't a slouch herself. As for Mimey... Well, he needed to practice using his barriers once in a while. It became even more exciting however when some locals boldly joined them along with their Pokémon: a Machoke and a short, purple-coloured crustacean Pokémon with boxing gloves in place of pincers. Crabrawler, the man had called him. The four tourists had teamed up against the locals and had played an exciting match, before Delia finally called it off on account of feeling tired. She then retreated to the resort, asking Ash to be back before lunchtime.

Ever a packet of energy, Ash simply strolled the sandy beach till something caught his eye: There was a teen riding a Sharpedo _fast_ towards a small booth on the shore. Intrigued, Ash went closer and spotted a rather large queue. "Hey, what's going on here?" He asked the last person in the line, a girl who seemed like she was from Sinnoh. "Oh, they call it the 'Sharpedo Jet,'" she explained. "They let us ride that Sharpedo for fifteen minutes! And if the Sharpedo likes us, it might even activate its speed boost!" The bubbly brunette, who Ash figured was around ten, turned to look at him. Unexpectedly though, her eyes widened. "Hey, I've seen you before!"

Ash was surprised. "Really? Where?"

The girl merely shrugged. "Ugh. I don't remember. Anyways, where you from?" She said, while reflexively reaching out to pet Pikachu. "So cute!"

"Hey, be careful okay?" Ash cautioned out of habit, but realised he didn't need to. "Anyways, I'm Ash Ketchum from Pallet town, and that's my buddy Pikachu. Nice to meet ya!"

"Hey same here!" The girl offered her hand. "I'm Verity. So, you're from Pallet town... Kanto, right?" She moved ahead with the line, and Ash joined her and nodded.

"So cool! Will you tell me more about it please? You see, I'm going to get my starter Pokémon in two months!" She exclaimed and then made a face. "But I don't wanna begin my journey in Sinnoh."

"Huh... Why?" Ash asked. "It's a nice place with awesome gyms and a cool league! Not to mention all the great Pokémon!"

"Oh, it's just that my mom is a very famous trainer there... So, everyone will expect me to be good. But I don't know if I will be that great," she sighed. "I'd rather gain some experience before I do the Sinnoh gyms."

"Hey, no need to worry!" Ash consoled. "I bet you'll do just fine wherever you go."

"Hey thanks," she said, mollified. "You know, you almost sounded like a person from my hometown for a bit. Still... How is Kanto for a beginner? It was your first journey, wasn't it?" She face-palmed. "Huh. I don't even know if you are a trainer or not, and here I am asking-"

"Hey just relax!" Ash interjected. "I am a trainer alright. And you know what, I can tell you about Kanto as much as anyone else; I've travelled it twice before."

"Why twice?" Verity asked. "Did you revisit the gyms?"

"Nah I only visited the Gyms once. The other time it was the Battle Frontier."

"Wow! Tell me all about it!" Verity enthused. "What all water-types live there?"

The next few minutes were spent with Ash narrating some of his more believable experiences to the eager girl. She seemed to be intrigued about the quirks of the gym leaders, and had a surprising amount of knowledge about their Sinnoh counterparts. She appeared to favour water types and absolutely adored water. This bought them to the topic of Sharpedo Jet however.

"What?" Ash asked. "You're planning to dive underwater with Sharpedo?" He frowned. "Why?"

"Hey it's my first time here!" The adventurous little girl explained. "I just want to see as much as I can. I might even see some new Pokémon in the sea." She looked up to the more experienced trainer defiantly, who was still frowning, with his Pikachu giving him a curious glance. "Anything wrong with it?"

This bought Ash back to earth. "Uh- no, I was just wondering why didn't I think of that before!" Ash looked towards his partner. "What do you say buddy, wanna see some more Alolan Pokémon?"

The mouse nodded with slightly less enthusiasm. "Pi pikapi Pikachu." He said in a cautioning tone. He _too_ wanted to see new Pokémon, but he was almost sure Ash would do something stupid and end up on trouble. Not to mention, his electricity would be useless underwater.

"Hey I'll be careful Pikachu," Ash promised. Pikachu simply rolled his eyes.

"Okay bye! Nice meeting you!" Verity greeted as her turn came. She quickly hopped onto the saddle draped over the shark Pokémon and shot off into the water.

When Ash's turn came, he made the most of it. With some careful complimenting and slight goading, he was able to get the ride Pokémon to activate its speed boost, which made their trip reassemble a roller coaster ride; Sharpedo ultimately got so fast that he was literally bouncing off the waves, tossing the two of them into the air for brief moments before catching them again. "This is the best!" He exclaimed after a particularly thrilling landing. "Isn't it right, Pikachu?" The mouse squealed its name in pleasure.

As Sharpedo finally slowed, Ash tightened his grip on the handles. "Alright," he murmured, bracing himself and alerting his starter. "I'm counting on you Sharpedo!"

"Sharpedo," the shark Pokémon dived into the sea with its passengers. Ash and Pikachu looked on in wonder. It was a pretty shallow section of the sea and the bed was only a few metres from the surface. Nonetheless, this little biome was brimming with life: there was a huge colony of pinkish-brown corals to Ash's left, and a rich growth of green moss to his right. As expected, there were also a lot of pokémon. The two had already spotted a shoal of Luvdiscs, a colony of Corsola and the odd Shellders. But that wasn't what Ash was interested in. He urged Sharpedo further, barely noticing a Milotic gracefully swimming past his head, until a strange sea-cucumber like Pokemon caught his attention. It had a black body with a white claw protruding out of it. Most of its body was lined up with magenta spikes. The curious trainer, who was turned rather reckless through all his excitement, leaned in and poked that unknown pokémon without a care in the world.

Probably annoyed at being disturbed, it thrust its claw towards Ash as if throwing a punch. This caused a surprised Ash to stumble briefly and lose a lot of air he had been holding in. Thankfully for him though that pokémon turned out to be friendly enough, as it simply made a victory sign with its fingers. Ash happily returned the gesture as he finally ran out of air. Pikachu swiftly swam to break the surface, closely followed by Sharpedo who had taken the signal from his departure.

Lana was enjoying her Saturday's half-day at school fishing near the far end of Hau'oli Beachfront. Her home was located just at the shore, which allowed her to spend as much time as she wanted at the sea. There was something comforting about the feeling of being alone and surrounded by water, while knowing all along that her home and family was only a few metres away... She loved the seas more than anything else in the world, but having been raised in a clan of fishermen, was completely aware of their wrath.

She was never completely alone anymore however. Even if she didn't count the faithful Lapras which her family had, the Popplio she had met and befriended only a few months ago never left her side. Not that she minded of course; the spirited, playful and excitable sea lion pokémon had rubbed off on her in so many ways that she couldn't even recall herself being shy and uncomfortable around people anymore. Nowadays she found herself pranking them and catching them off-guard with completely unexpected jokes instead...

A bite.

Lana let go all of her thoughts and wiped her mind clean. She became one with her fishing rod, one with the Lapras she was mounted on and pulled the lure out with only resolve on her mind. A Bruxish broke through the surface. Unfortunately though, it's arrival coincided with a boy and a Pikachu breaking the waters as well on a Sharpedo, such that the gnash teeth pokémon's rather sharp fangs came within inches of his face. His reaction was _priceless_. It was all Lana could do to hold back a giggle as the boy stumbled, seemed to almost catch himself from falling, heaved a relieved sigh, stumbled again and fell over.

Lana, Popplio, Lapras and Pikachu looked on in concern and anticipation. The waters here weren't as shallow as the beach after all... Suddenly, the water bubbled and then a head broke through. The boy then slowly swam till he got a firm grasp on his Sharpedo's fin. "Wasn't expecting that," he sheepishly mumbled, as if he hadn't just faced down the prospect of drowning in a deep section of the Melemele sea. Popplio, who was never a pokémon to hold back laughter, started clapping his fins and making his equivalent of gleeful sounds. This set off the shy fishergirl too, who broke into a fit of soft giggles.

Hearing sounds of laughter, Ash finally noticed his company. It was a girl with blue hair and blue clothes, riding on a blue Lapras with a blue pokémon he hadn't seen before in the blue sea. _Man, that fall must have dazed me. I sound so ridiculous right now..._ He smiled sheepishly at the girl, who was giggling so hard she didn't even notice the fish escaping from her fishing rod. _Should I tell her...? No, it looks like she is laughing at me. I'll let that fish get away from the blue girl._ He himself broke into laughter.

Pikachu waited for his trainer to calm down, before finally readying a mild thundershock to get his attention. He stopped abruptly as he recalled that his trainer had just taken a dip inside the sea. He sighed, jumped and smacked Ash's head with his tail instead.

"Hey! What's the big idea?" Ash exclaimed.

Pikachu simply bought his left paw in front of his eyes and looked towards it. "Pikapi chu-pika Chu."

"Oh right," Ash agreed. "Our time must be almost up. Let's go, Sharpedo!"

"Sharpedo!" The ride pokémon steered the boy and his Pikachu towards the beach.

As he reached the lady at the counter of the now empty shack, she was almost prepared to lash out at him due to being so late that she lost all her customers. However, as she noticed the thrilled and happy look in her Sharpedo's eyes, she let go. _Well, this is a much better outcome._ She did this mostly so that her Sharpedo could enjoy himself afterall. "How'd you enjoy the pokémon jet ski? It's an Alolan speciality." She said instead.

"It was really, really fun!" The young kid said excitedly, his happy voice seeping away last of her anger. "That's so nice to hear!" She said cheerfully. "Come again anytime you like!"

Ash gladly agreed. "Thank you Sharpedo." He went over to pat her partner pokémon, who was certainly enjoying his attention. "Um, where are all the people?" He asked, looking towards where the queue should have been.

"Well... You guys kinda forgot all about the time limit." She sighed. "It's slightly past closing time anyway."

Ash's eyes widened almost comically, and he stared apologising profusely before recalling rest of her words. "Wait... Closing time? Closing time! Mom had asked me to be back before lunch!" He slightly panicked, before turning to Pikachu. "No, we can still make it. Race you there, Pikachu." With that, the boy and his Pokémon set off.

Litten was looking forward to have a relaxing nap at the beach. The sun was good, he was well fed, and had already taken a berry to uncle Stoutland. So, all in all, he was completely free for the day. There still was the little matter of training... He'd do that in the evening. Smiling softly, he sniffed a small section of the sand to check for any rocks, and then pawed it just to be sure. Satisfied, he looked towards the horizon, not quite pondering over his life, and yawned widely. He wasn't interested in anything besides a good, long nap at the moment. He lied down on his stomach with his forepaws close to his mouth. He began licking them just the way he liked, when the quiet was disrupted.

"You won't beat me!"

"Pika Pika!"

And there, before he could even react, the idiot had stepped on his tail! To say Litten was annoyed would be a gross understatement.

"Ah, sorry!" Ash quickly turned to apologise.

"Lit-tten!" And _there_. Just like that, the irate cat torched the idiot's face with his strongest ember. So much for my good, long nap. The cat walked away from the sprawled down boy and his Pikachu, who was touching his head to check how hot the ember had actually been.

 _Whoa, it's hot!_ Pikachu quickly withdrew his paw. _Even Charizard doesn't shoot as hot flames at Ash even when he's angry! This would take at least five minutes to recover from!_ Of course, if creatures like pokémon existed in the world, all wildlife needed to have a certain... resistance to elements, and humans were no exceptions to the law.

After shaking off this minor setback, the two made their way much more carefully towards the resort, only to find Delia laying down on a poolside bench with complete abandon and enjoying a glass of Pinap juice. MisterMime, for once, wasn't looking hell-bent to free someone from his chores too. It suddenly occurred to Ash that he had probably never seen the two so relaxed before. At least she won't be mad at me for being late... "Mom I'm back!" He announced as Pikachu quickly jumped to Mimey's bench and out of Delia's firing line, just in case.

"Welcome back Ash!" So probably it wasn't really needed. Before Delia could remember that Ash was late, the boy launched himself into an enthusiastic description of his ride on the Sharpedo jet. "...and there were so many pokémon I've never seen before!" He concluded in perfect sync with Pikachu.

"I'm glad you're having fun," Delia said happily. "It's all thanks to Mimey!" The said pokémon cheerfully made a rotating gesture with his hands, clearly enacting his winning roll of the lottery wheel. _Man, they're in a good mood. I hope nothing spoils it._

"Okay," Delia picked herself up briskly and placed a round hat she had purchased for herself from a souvenir shop inside the resort. "Let's head out." She smoothened her floral-patterned orange frock and straightened.

"Head out?" Ash asked rather dumbly.

"To professor Oak's cousin," Delia reminded, while making an egg-like shape with her hands. The principal had, for some reason, invited Ash and Delia for lunch at the pokémon school when they told him of their plans to visit today. "Oh right." Ash remembered.

The little party chose to use a Taurus-cart to travel to the pokémon school, and Pikachu seemed to enjoy every moment. The playful mouse kept trying to grab and pull at the Tauros' tails, and was quite disappointed when Ash picked him up. It seemed like they were stopping in the market. "He has invited us for lunch, so it is only polite to take some gift for him, isn't it?" Delia explained as she and Mimey got off from a side. "The berries in this market are all fresh and tasty," the cart's driver assured them, as Ash and Pikachu left it too.

While Delia and Mimey were picking berries, Ash gladly took the opportunity to stretch himself and have a good look at the marketplace. Suddenly a sound caught his attention. Turning, he noticed an unknown, white and brown bug-like pokémon with yellow-orange pinchers at its head, staring at him curiously. "It's a pokémon!" Ash exclaimed excitedly. He leaned to get a closer look. "Wonder what pokémon it is... Ack!" Ash exclaimed and jerked away, with the bug having caught his nose in a firm and careful vice grip. Apparently this pokémon didn't approve the excited trainer being all loud and invading its personal space. Ash ultimately managed to shake it off, and it quickly made for the hole in the divider and dug away from him, leaving a trail due to the thin soil coupled with its less than optimal digging capabilities.

When Ash finally looked up from clutching his nose and spotted the trail left behind, he thought for a brief moment. _That vice grip attack sure was strong_. "Alright! We're gonna catch it, Pikachu!"

Pikachu was half-expecting this signal, and thus wasted no time in springing off Ash's shoulder and setting off towards the trail. Ash quickly followed, everything else conveniently forgotten. By the time Delia noticed his absence, he had been long gone. "Huh?" She looked around inquisitively. "Don't worry miss," the driver reassured, bemused. "He's just gone chasing a weak bug-type. Once he's had his fill, he'll able to find the pokémon school easily enough. All of Melemele knows it's location." Delia sighed, trusting her son. "Alright then, let's wait for him there."

Tapu-Koko was bored. He was the guardian of conflict and the protector of the Melemele island, but had hardly anything to do. These being peaceful times, there were no battles to be fought. However, the pokémon school had a half-day today for some reason, so he couldn't simply sneak up there to look for some potentially strong trainers whom he could possibly convince to battle him sometime. He rubbed his brilliant orange rooster-like crest with frustration. It was when he heard a voice.

"Come back here!"

Curious, Tapu-Koko peered closely. _Okay, just a trainer chasing a Grubbin_. Even as he dismissed this as something uninteresting, he noticed the said trainer clearing a huge, upturned log in a single leap while running, even as his Pikachu ran under it. This physical feat attracted his attention, and he started following covertly as he tried to catch a good look of the child.

 _Huh, haven't seen him around before._ Tapu-Koko realised. _Okay then, it's not as if I've got anything else to do around here..._ The whimsical (and bored) guardian-deity decided to watch over the kid and to guide him back towards the city when he finally realises that he is lost.

Soon enough, the kid had lost the Grubbin into the deeper sections of the forest. But, in a surprising show of determination, he was still frantically digging around the spot where it had disappeared. _No time for this, got work to do._ Tapu-Koko quickly threw a berry at the kid's head to snap him out of his single-minded pursuit. The boy rubbed his head once, looked around, and realising that he was lost, quickly stood up.

"Huh? Where... are we?" He asked to no one in particular. His Pikachu climbed his right shoulder with the berry Tapu-Koko had thrown, and nonchalantly began eating it. The boy looked around him and observed with slight nervousness, "we came a bit too far... Where were we supposed to take that egg again?"

Tapu-Koko was intrigued by this kid. On one hand, he was clearly brave enough to not be freaking out when lost deep in the forests of an unknown region. On another, he didn't even remember where he was supposed to go? Even his Pikachu wasn't fazed in the slightest; in fact, he didn't seem to care about the situation much, and was happily munching his berry. _As much as I wish to see if they make it, I've got a job to do. Now to lead him back to the city..._ He noticed his faithful Bewear sleeping nearby, and decided to enlist it's help. He dropped another berry on his round, black stomach to arouse him and pointed him to the stranger.

Bewear cried softly and waved cheerfully towards the teenager. "Another pokémon?" The kid wondered as he turned around. "Hey! It's waving!" He happily approached the bear, as Tapu-Koko braced himself for the following round.

Indeed, when the trainer had gotten sufficiently close, Bewear gave a shrill cry and snapped a healthy nearby tree into half with a single jab of his left arm. This scared the living daylights out of the foreigners, who quickly turned back and ran towards the city with a roaring Bewear in hot pursuit. Tapu-Koko once again marvelled at the kid's athleticism as he followed them till the edge of the forest. Once there, he quickly flew across Bewear to notify him that his job here was over. Then he decided to stick around that new kid for as long as he could. He was the only fresh thing on the island after all.

Having escaped from the scarily powerful pokémon, Ash and Pikachu heaved a huge sigh of relief. As soon as they were done, they noticed a Charizard descending nearby. It was low enough for a rider to be visible.

"That was... A Charizard?" Ash wondered. He noticed a saddle. "It's a sky ride pokémon?" Recalling the Sharpedo jet, he decided to follow the Charizard in the hope of reaching another shack where he could find some help. After running for only a few metres, the bushes around them cleared to reveal a sight. Ahead of them was a huge open field, on the other side of which was a group of big buildings with round, hay-covered spires. The buildings themselves were open from the sides and framed by huge white pillars and arches. There was a huge slide running from one of them, which some kids were sliding on. Ash looked around and noticed that some buildings were surrounded by a canal where a lot of kids and water pokémon seemed to be playing. His eyes brightened with excitement. He shifted his focus to near him, and noticed three pokémon he knew nothing about: the blue sea-lion he had seen earlier, a tamato-berry like pokémon and one who had a round, white body with yellow and brown spikes all over it and two yellow cheek-pouches. "Even more pokémon!"

Curious, Ash approached them. "Look out!" A girl dressed in a completely white get-up and wearing a strange white hat warned. Ash slowed down and looked inquiringly, before he heard cries from multiple Tauros. He didn't have a lot of time to react before one of them hit him in his side and struck him down, with Pikachu jumping away to avoid the same ordeal.

"Stop!" commanded a high-pitched voice. "Hold it, Tauros!"

"Are you okay?" Another voice, this one from the girl from before, approached him along with Pikachu's more familiar "Pikapi?" as Ash slowly raised himself up from the dirty ground. Ash merely rubbed the back of his head and smiled unfazed. "Yeah, I'm fine!" He convinced the worried girl as other people approached them. "I'm used to dealing with Tauros." He picked his hat up and restored it to its rightful place. "You see, I've caught some.' He had had enough teasing and calling-out for lying throughout his life to blurt out that he had a whole herd of them, you see.

The unknown boy's friendly smile even after being trampled by a Tauros cleared all worries Lillie had about him. She returned his smile, before sensing a Tauros approaching. As if on autopilot, she exclaimed in surprise and jumped behind the new boy, clutching both his shoulders tightly. "Pika...?" The wondering voice made her aware of the boy's Pikachu inches away from her feet. She squealed pathetically and backed off a few more paces.

The new boy turned curiously and asked, "are you... afraid of pokémon?"

 _There. She'd done it again. The boy would think her a complete fool!_ She didn't want anyone to know about her irrational fear of touching pokémon! It was completely illogical anyway, and she didn't understand it herself.

 _Well... Let's see what I can make of it._

She stiffened her back and clenched her fists. "I am not afraid of pokémon!" She claimed as defiantly as she could. "I love pokémon..." _No, it isn't working. It isn't looking even slightly convincing!_ Sighing, she looked away with shame and softly added, "as a topic of studying..."

Luckily for her, Mallow interjected at this point. "I'm sorry!" She apologized while rubbing the back of her head, "I didn't see you come out of the forest. I couldn't stop in time." She approached him along with Lana and Sophocles.

"Lillie, as you see," Sophocles added without thinking, "doesn't touch pokémon."

 _Sophocles!_ Lillie moaned mentally. Any chance to save face was now over due to him simply tossing that fact away! To a complete stranger! She'd have to ask Mallow to do something about this habit of his...

She stiffened her back again. "I do too! But only after I've concluded that it's safe to do so..." By this point, it was clear to everyone present that the naive girl was trying very hard to save even the slightest shred of dignity she could, and she clearly thought that her statements weren't making it any clearer than it was already.

"Don't worry!" Mallow added in a cheerful voice. "You'll be able to touch them someday, Lillie." Lana, ever a person of few words, backed Mallow with a simple "Yeah, she's right." This drew the boy's attention to her however. He pointed excitedly, startling her.

"You were fishing at the sea!" He recalled. Lana's eyes widened as she herself remembered the strange encounter from the morning. "For Bruxish!" She confirmed, with Popplio in her arms having recognised the boy too. "A friend of yours Lana?" Mallow inquired curiously.

Seeing this as the perfect opening to introduce himself to the friends and ask for help, Ash began, pointing a thumb towards himself. "I'm Ash Ketchum from Pallet town in the Kanto region, and this is my buddy Pikachu." The mentioned Pokemon simply waved and emitted a sound in an almost practiced kind of manner. "It's nice to meet you!" He grinned widely, and Pikachu copied his gesture so well that it would almost seem they were a single unit. "Pikachu!" Ash then turned towards the building. "So, where are we?"

"This is the pokémon school," Mallow, the de facto leader of their small batch, responded.

"Oh, the pokémon school!" Ash remarked with the air of someone who had found something. "So, this is it, huh?"

Mallow then noted the backpack on his back and put two and two together. "Oh, I get it! You were lost!" _Of course, this has to be a new transfer student from Kanto!_

"I guess..." Ash agreed hesitantly.

Mallow, being the kind and helpful person that she was, grabbed the boy's wrist tightly and yanked him towards the school. "I'll show you around!" She offered (in words at least, it wasn't as if the Kantonian had much choice with his wrist held so tight) while planning to help him to the principal's office. The pokémon sitting on her shoulder happily emitted a sweet scent for some reason.

"Show me around?" Ash asked, wondering why the girl would be so interested in leaving her other friends to show him the school building without being asked for. Then there was the little matter of her iron grip on his wrist and her pokémon's sudden happy mood... His conversation with Cilan briefly flowed through his mind. He panicked, thinking about the only way he could to get out of this mess. "You don't have to pull so hard..." He reminded her.

 _Okay, holding his hand might have been a bit unnecessary_ , Mallow thought as she loosened her grip on Ash's wrist. But who am I kidding? _The boy is cute. Not to mention good natured enough to not yell at me for trampling him and for not laughing at Lillie over her fear. Plus, he brushed off being hit by a Tauros as it was nothing._.. Don't get her wrong, Mallow's primarily objective was still to help him reach principal Oak's office, but she was allowed to have her fun on the way. When you were the only help at a restaurant and had to endure being ogled at and flirted with by drunken sailors and other shady people with a smile, it was only fair to want a little payback... "Come this way."

Ash was an ...interesting person to say the least. He got excited over perfectly normal things like a few students of the pokémon sports class training with their pokémon in handball, and kept complimenting even the most routine aspects so profusely the walls would have blushed if they were able to. Mallow chucked to herself. It's rare, a guy flirting with a school building with me around... Mallow felt oddly comforted by this notion. At least some boy of her age outside of Sophocles was treating her as a person, let alone a friend. She really hoped this guy would choose their class... She could use another talkative and excitable person in the group. Don't get her wrong, Lana and Lillie were her best friends, but Lillie was quite studious and shy, while Lana simply didn't speak a lot. Kiawe was slightly older than all of them and not much of a talker himself. And Sophocles... The best could be said about him was that it was better when he stayed quiet. Either he would spout some absolute gibberish about technology and electric-type pokémon while simply doing that guinea-pig thing with his Togedemaru yet again, or he would utter something reflexively and make Lillie uncomfortable.

Eventually they reached the principal's office. "Principal sir!" Mallow called, knocking at the door. "I've bought a new student!" She didn't notice Ash frantically trying to talk her out of this misunderstanding from behind however.

The door opened to reveal a MisterMime and an unknown woman wearing a round, off-white hat and an orange shirt with a white floral pattern. "Wow, you made it all the way here..."

"Mom!"

 _Mom? Oh. To get him enrolled or something._

"Oh," Delia explained, "I was just reviewing a bit."

 _Okay. Seems like she is keeping it a surprise from Ash or something._

"Alola Ash!" Professor Oak waved. "Welcome to the pokémon Solrock!"

"Professor Oak!" Ash and Pikachu gawked at the man unabashedly. Oak merely chucked. "I guess I do look like him..." he mused. "I'm professor Oak's cousin, Samson Oak." He introduced himself.

"He's the principal of the school." Mallow added.

"I'm trapinched to meet you!" The awful punster tried again.

"Trapinched...?" A puzzled Ash asked the empty space around him, even as the speaker was messing around with the MisterMime. As always, it was left to her to make the explanations... "The principal always makes pokémon puns." She gave Ash a slightly suffering smile.

"It's important for people and pokémon to live happily Tyranitar." The professor helpfully added, just to make his prowess clear. Ash and Mallow gave him a look.

"... So, after following that Charizard," Ash explained after they had comfortably settled down on a sofa inside the principal's room, "I somehow ended up here."

"So, you are not a new student after all..." Mallow idly commented while looking towards Delia for any tell-tale sign. She caught her sighing with resignation. Out of kindness for her, Mallow decided to play along with her lie. "I'm sorry. I quickly jumped to the wrong conclusion." She rubbed the underside of her nose nervously.

Meanwhile, Samson Oak had already placed a call to his cousin back in Pallet Town. "Hey Samuel, it's me! I've received the egg safe and sound."

"Oh Samson. So, everything was fine, huh?" His brother responded from over the line. "Thank you, Delia," he added while giving her a meaningful look.

Mallow looked towards the man on the phone in wonder, before glancing towards her principal. Surprisingly, the man caught her eye, eyed Ash briefly and gave her a meaningful look. _Okay..._ The perceptive icon of Aina cafeteria played along. "Hey principal Oak! Is it okay if I show Ash around the campus?"

Oak had barely nodded before Mallow led an excited Ash towards the exit of his chamber. After the two kids were out of earshot, Delia dropped her friendly facade and gave Samuel an 'explain yourself' look, who eagerly started explaining why and what he had planned for Ash...

Mallow showed Ash around the whole school while telling him about all the courses offered to them. "We have sections on various pokémon competitive sports, pokémon entertainment... Movies, music, cooking and such stuff, you know?" Ash nodded along, amazed at the sheer variety of options available. There was something for every kind of trainer out there! "Awesome!" Ash praised. "It is, isn't it?" Mallow pressed. "There are batches for breeding, medicine, type-specialism, battling, contests..."

"Wait," Ash interjected, "battling too?"

"You bet!" Mallow agreed while leading Ash towards a door less room. "This is our classroom!" She explained while motioning Ash to come inside. Ash gave an impressed look to the rather small classroom, before rushing straight to the railings. He marvelled at the view from the outside and smiled widely. "This is great!" He and Pikachu took a deep breath. "What do you guys study?"

Mallow broke into a rather biased description of her subject... She wanted Ash to opt for her class, after all. "Our course is called culture and pokémon of Alola and beyond, but we basically learn everything they teach in all the other classes!" She had conveniently omitted the phrase 'a bit of' from somewhere in her earlier description, which made the course seem more appealing than it was. It was, in fact, the most basic course they taught the teens here, and was basically 'a bit of everything.' It was the least popular course of the school as most people of their ages had themselves all figured out and went for specialised classes. This batch was mostly made up of people who were late-bloomers (like Lana, her and Lillie) or simply unaware about more than a single type (like Kiawe and Sophocles: though Mallow wasn't sure if he even knew much about 'his speciality' electric type. But she figured it could be useful to Ash with him being new and all... Even if Professor Oak would tell him the real description pretty soon, she had to give it a shot.

"Wow, that's so awesome!" Ash complimented, oblivious.

Breaking off at a tangent, Mallow added. "This is not the only place we can learn: there is also the field with Tauros and the lake. You can learn all sorts of things in this huge campus."

"Hey, you two!" A deep male voice called them out a greeting. They turned to see Professor Kukui in his regular style of wearing his white lab-coat over a bare chest. "Alola!" He greeted with a hand held to his side as he approached the two.

"Professor Kukui!" Mallow greeted. "Professor?" Ash inquired with an undertone of surprise. Wasn't anything abnormal though... Prof. Kukui didn't really look like one with his goatee, his figure, his style of talking and, more importantly, his get-up. Mallow had a slight suspicion that he had been sent to keep an eye out for Ash... Apparently, he wished for him to attend this class too... _Great_ , Mallow cheered to herself.

"He's our teacher," she explained to Ash, before eyeing Kukui. "Professor, this is Ash!"

"I've heard about him from Professor Oak," Kukui simply added. He seemed to be analysing Ash however. "Ash, Pikachu," he added, "the pokémon school is a radiant place. Enjoy it, even if it's only for a day."

"Yeah!" "Pika!"

At that instant, they heard the distant sound of tyres on the road. Having a good idea of who they were, Mallow turned around and groaned.

Three people were blocking the road and ganging up on an older boy with black hair streaked with jet red and his Charizard. They were all wearing the tell-tale black tank tops and shorts with white crosses and skull pendants. The blue haired boy in the middle seemed to be their leader.

"You messed up big by making us stop our bicycle," he addressed Kiawe hypocritically. The two goons with him agreed. "You shouldn't mess with us." He made a strange hand gesture. "We're team Skull."

"I don't remember blocking the road," the boy, who Mallow realised with some amusement, was Kiawe, replied. "In fact, it's you who are blocking it."

That hurt the Skull grunt's pride however. "You're gonna regret saying that! I dare you to say that again."

Mallow quickly ran down towards her other friends, who were stealthily watching the action unfold from the gate. _Surely Kiawe had it handled_. "Who are they?" Ash asked.

"They are team Skull," Mallow, his self-appointed guide, answered. "They talk big to get people to battle them. I hate them." Meanwhile, Kukui arrived too.

"If you beat us in a pokémon battle, we'll forget this ever happened." The lead grunt goaded. His even more foolish henchman added, "if you lose, we get Charizard," which, of course, annoyed Kiawe and his beast.

"You're gonna regret this," he darkly muttered. The Skulls failed to take a hint however, and released their pokémon: three each of Salandit, Yungoos and Zubat. "Hurry up and call out your Charizard." The confident team Skull leader goaded, as Kiawe looked on unamused.

That's when Ash and Pikachu broke into the picture. "Wait!" He yelled.

Mallow was worried. _He doesn't know what he's getting himself into._ "Ash!" She cried desperately as the rest of her group watched on in horror. Professor Kukui meanwhile seemed... interested.

"It's cowardly to gang up on someone!" Ash yelled, completely different from his cheerful self at the moment. He seemed fired up to say the least.

"And what are you going to do?"

"I'll battle you of course!" Ash explained as if stating the obvious. "I'll help you out," he smiled at Kiawe, but was probably scared by his intense glare. "Eh...?"

"I'm Kiawe," the big guy introduced himself, "and I don't need your help."

"Be careful Ash!" Mallow called urgently. Undeterred, Ash beckoned Pikachu, who quickly climbed up his right hand and sprang off his left shoulder. "Let's go Pikachu! I choose you!" He said confidently.

"Piiikaaa!" The mouse crouched low and sparked his cheeks generously. Seeing him set, Kiawe simply added, "don't hurt yourself," before sending out his trusted Turtonator, a big pokémon with a large shell covered in spikes and a snout to blow fire from. Ash was clearly impressed. "Cool! That's a Turtonator?"

"A fire and dragon type." Kiawe informed. "He's my partner."

"Get them," the Skull grunts ordered.

"Salandit, venoshock!"

"Yungoos, bite!"

"Leech life, Zubat!"

As Kiawe silently gestured his Pokémon to set up a shell trap, Ash exploded into action. "Pikachu!" He posed as if battling himself. "Quick attack!" Pikachu shot into motion like a bullet, dodged the venoshocks and rammed into the three Salandit, all of whom were thrown to the ground due to sheer momentum of the impact.

"Wow, that's fast!" Kiawe said, surprised and no longer dismissive of this unknown kid, who had only just realised that he had probably forgotten to use power absorbers on Pikachu today. Of course, it wasn't as if he was thinking about beginning a journey here...

Meanwhile, the other pokémon made contact with Turtonator and fell victims to his powerful shell trap. They were flung to the ground too, scorched. "What was that?" Ash asked curiously. "The spikes on Turtonator's shell will explode if agitated," Kiawe explained, much to Ash's amazement.

"Go use flame burst!" The Skull leader tried to bring themselves back into the match and his Salandits complied. "Dodge and use thunderbolt!" Ash ordered. Pikachu waited till the last minute before jumping and unleashing a powerful Thunderbolt. Once he was done, the Salandits were all but out for the count. _He's good!_ Mallow wondered. "We did it!" He cheered and rubbed the underside of his nose, waiting for the henchmen to make a move. His Pikachu again made an almost similar gesture to him.

Kiawe though had wasted enough time here. "Let me finish this," he confidently asked Ash to back off. "Let's go! Turtonator!" He readied himself to perform his Z-move. Ash, clearly unfamiliar with it, looked on amazed as some form of power visibly transferred from Kiawe through his Pokémon via the pair of crystals they had. "My full power! Body and soul! My whole body burns like the hot flames of the Akala islands! Inferno Overdrive!"

Turtonator unleashed a massive fireball, and all the poor Skull pokémon knew was pain.

"We'll remember it!" The Skull grunts said somewhat pathetically as their fainted pokémon were automatically pulled back in by their balls. "If you knew a Z-move, you should have told us!" They scurried away hurriedly.

"Kiawe, what was that?" Ash asked a smirking Kiawe. "A Z-move," answered professor Kukui, who, Mallow realised, was speaking his first words since he had left the classroom. "Nice going Kiawe!" Sophocles complimented, while Mallow went over to Ash. "You weren't bad either Ash!" The boy in question smiled sheepishly before turning back to the professor. "A Z-move is a special technique taught in the Alola region. There are four islands in this region, and there are guardian deities that protect them. You can participate in an island challenge, and only those who conquer it are allowed to use a Z-move." Kukui explained. Rather openly too, considering Ash is a foreigner. If anything, Mallow was convinced now that one way or another, Ash was joining the school. "Guardian deities! Island challenge! Z-MOVES!" Ash's and Pikachu's eyes were practically glowing.

Kukui flung an arm across the shoulders of both the boys. "That was a mega-punch level battle. You like battling, don't you Ash?"

"I do!" Ash agreed. "I want to be a pokémon master!" That caught Kukui's attention, who became contemplative. "I see..."

Tapu-Koko decided he had seen enough. When he saw the new boy enter the school building, he had opted to wait it out by the trees to see what happens. And before he knew, those harmless idiots had tried to stir some chaos, and the boy, who had no way to gauge the threat they possessed, had bravely jumped in to assist the fire-type trainer when rest of the school had only watched. Then he had unleashed his battling skills, and his Pikachu had barely taken a scratch throughout. He thought that even the Turtonator-trainer acknowledged the fact that the boy could have dealt with them alone, though it would have taken time. Still, Tapu-Koko was amazed at the Pikachu's speed and electric power. _Once he unlocks his surge-surfer as a Raichu, he might even outspeed him in an electric terrain_. Tapu-Koko decided that he couldn't let this trainer slip off his grasps, foreigner or not. He threw a final berry at the kid's head to draw his attention, and then returned to his shrine at a speed low enough for him to be able to spot him.

"What was that pokémon?" Ash asked suddenly. "What pokémon?" Mallow turned her attention towards the place where Ash was staring at, hoping to be of some help. "Where? I don't see anything."

"But it was just there!" Ash turned to them and explained animatedly. "It was definitely a pokémon! It looked like this..." Ash tried to explain, "and had a yellow-orange head kind of like a rooster..." That drew surprised gasps from Professor and Lillie.

"Did you see..." Kukui muttered.

"Tapu-Koko?" Lillie finished for him in a voice full of wonder. "You saw the guardian deity of Melemele island, Tapu-Koko!" It was now the other's turns to gasp. Ash though... He simply shrugged and wondered, "so that was a guardian deity pokémon..."

At this point, Ash's stomach rumbled, and bought Kukui out of his thought process. "Come with me Ash," he offered, "seeing as you've seen the whole school by now, I think you can have the lunch you've skipped." He grinned. That inexplicably got a bigger reaction from the kid than seeing a legendary pokémon did, and he eagerly followed him back to Oak's chamber.

By the time Kukui entered the office, Samson and Samuel had already explained Delia everything they thought about Ash and why they wanted him to join the school. It wouldn't be the first time the principal's cousin had taken a decision for Ash, as Delia told Kukui- apparently the boy's journey to the Orange island, Johto and Unova were all his ideas. It hadn't taken Kukui long to place this kid's face on the young finalist of Kalos league from a few days ago, and when Oak had asked him to look out for the kid, he had eagerly accepted. _His Pikachu was as strong as I thought it would be..._ Kukui had seen enough of him at this point to be sure that he had a natural talent in battling and some of his feats were amazing even by his standards. Not to mention, he was sure that Oak's cousin had hidden a few even more astonishing details from them, and his only hint was the teen's reaction on seeing Tapu-Koko.

The question that had remained, however, was that why the Oaks wanted him to attend a school. Surely there was little of use to him here? But even this query was solved when the well-experienced and well-travelled kid had simply declared his intent to become a 'pokémon master.' It all clicked into place then.

The Oaks, like him, realised that the boy had already become as good as he could have at battling and it was already good enough for a regional champion. Kukui prided himself for not being short-sighted enough to let his judgement be clouded by the fact that the boy hadn't won a league yet. A pokémon league was only part-battling anyway. It was equally a competition of training, moveset-building and teambuilding. Kukui already knew from the Lumiose Conference final that the kid didn't really excel at the last two... Even if his Lumiose team was good, it had a massive weakness to ice and ground type moves. Not to mention, he battled with a Pikachu, however strong.

From talking to the Oak cousins after Delia and Ash had departed to see the Ruins of Conflict and Iki town, Kukui learnt that although Ash had aimed to be a pokémon master since the day he heard the term, he hadn't really worked out what it meant. From what he heard, Ash had, in fact, continued on single-mindedly to each region with only gym battles and league in mind. He had barely taught any pokémon a move which it didn't learn naturally, and even when he did, he received help from a third party. _That explains why he hasn't got coverage moves._ He hadn't ever visited move tutors or even bought TMs before.

He had never even managed his finances: his trainer account was literally flooding with money due to his astonishing win-loss ratio in battle, a continued League sponsorship plus a lot of backers who had invested money in his career (probably in gratitude for the help he had been to them). Samuel Oak simply explained that he always managed to find an elder-brother kind of figure to take care of him on his journeys. This was a serious problem, as with his single-mindedness and their care, he had largely remained an infant when it came to life-management.

The only solution which had occurred to Kukui was to make him take his attention off of battling for a few months, a sentiment shared by the professor as well as his Mom when she was told their reasoning. _But how to break it to him_... That, he thought, he could let his mother figure out.

Kukui had to say he was pretty excited; it wasn't often that he got to work with kids having championship potential. They were rare even outside Alola, after all. _So... Team selection, move selection, move tutoring, life skills..._ He figured he could fix the first three easily. As for the last one... He wouldn't be kidding anyone if he said he could do even a half-decent job at it. On the other hand, Mallow's batch could easily do that. They were already doing a good job on Lillie in that regard...

While he was working his brain furiously, Tapu-Koko was visited by the foreign boy and his mother at his shrine. He quickly hid behind a tree and observed them. From what he heard, the mother was somewhat subdued and trying to talk to the boy, Ash, about school and how good it would be to join it. The guardian could sense a conflict of reluctance and resolve within her, and silently vowed that he would ensure that her resolve wins. Ash, on the other hand, wasn't interested anymore in talking about anything other than Z-move... It was then an idea occurred to the Tapu: even if only Alolans were allowed the privilege of the island challenge, no one could disregard his will... He quickly flew to Hala's abode, retrieved a Z-ring, flew to the Ula'Ula, found the totem pokémon and got an electrium-Z. Luckily the two had stopped by Iki town and were only just leaving when he returned. He covertly tailed them and bade his time.

Even when dining, Delia noted that Ash's mind was still on the powerful special move he had been talking about throughout the day. She sighed. After having the talk with Samuel and his cousin, she had realised how lacking his son's education was in basic life skills (she couldn't care less about the pokémon bit), and how his single-minded pursuit of a goal even he didn't know about was hurting it even more by the year. Perhaps it was for the best that he stayed back, especially if the laid-back people here manage to relax him a bit, and hopefully teach him about life...

"Ko-o-Kooo!" Tapu-Koko called, seeing his chance. As expected, the kid and his Pikachu caught his voice and followed it to locate him. With a clear gesture, he began flying with half his normal speed, and getting the hint, Ash and Pikachu quickly left their restaurant to follow.

The guardian pokémon led them to a high point slightly off the city, and more importantly, away from the crowds. Satisfied, he slowed and let the kid approach him.

"The island's guardian deity," the kid muttered to himself, "Tapu-Koko..." _So, the people at the school did their job_. "Hey, why only me?" He asked without even flinching from his close proximity to a deity. "Do you want to tell me something?"

That simple statement tipped the balance in the boy's favour. Not even the thought of catching him appeared to Ash? He had the character to compete in the island challenge, and Tapu-Koko would make sure it happened. He sent the Z-ring to a puzzled Ash with magnet rise.

"It looks similar to the thing Kiawe wears..." He muttered.

"Tapu-Koko" the bird said in a soft, sing-song voice to show its benevolence and then nodded once. Ash smiled and took the ring. It flared briefly as it saw through his emotions before accepting them. It then settled on his right wrist and formed a link with them. Satisfied, the legendary pokémon departed.

Ash was startled at this experience, but one thing was clear to him: he absolutely had to attempt the island challenge now and learn about the Z-moves. Thus, his new journey had to be in the league-less Alola. He went back and explained himself to his mom, who only looked relieved. She, however, reminded him that he hardly knew about the place, and might be better off if he joined the pokémon school for a while to learn about it and the pokémon. Ash wasn't completely sold on it, but accepted nonetheless; after all, only Kiawe and Professor Kukui seemed to know much about Z-moves... Hence, calls were placed, arrangements were made, and a new chapter in his life readied for when he completed his traveling with mom two days later.

 **Author's Note:**

 **That was my version of the Sun and Moon episode 1... how did you guys find it? I'm open to all opinions, though unless someone convinces me otherwise, most of my future chapters will follow a similar format.**

 **1) That Verity bit... let's just consider her an Easter egg, or probably an open thread in case I ever plan to interpret M20 without Ash in this canon... Just so you know, she isn't Cynthia's daughter in the fic, as it wouldn't make sense in the anime universe.**

 **2) Did you like my portrayal of Lana, Lillie, Mallow, Tapu-koko? Sophocles? I'm kinda sorry if I made him sound like a windbag...**

 **3) My little theory of Z-ring responding to emotions... well, in a world where brain waves can have a physical form (Psychic type), I argue emotions can too. That's why moves like return and frustration work.**

 **That's why... Mega-evolutions, Ash-Greninja and Z-moves work.**

 **Please review :)**


	8. 6

**Author's Note:**

 **This is day two of Ash's journey of Alola. I am currently under the process of planning the fic ahead, and hence for this chapter I have mostly stayed in my comfort zone.**

 **I am not perfectly satisfied with this chapter. Please share your thoughts and help me improve**

 _CHAPTER 6_

Ash was having a hard time figuring out what, exactly, was going on with his life.

Presently he was aimlessly throwing rocks in one of the numerous lakes of the Brooklet hills, his last stop on the Akala island. Pausing for a bit to let the ripples from his last projectile fade away, he looked up and saw his mom gazing at the setting sun with an unreadable expression. He sighed, and faced it himself. The lakes were resplendent in the mild, orange glow of its last remaining radiance, which reflected from their surfaces. All of them were located on natural steps on the hill and their shores were lined with lush green vegetation. It was a suitable residence for a lot of pokémon. Ash idly noted that were he on a pokémon journey, he would have admired their beauty, suggested a break and let his pokémon out to enjoy. Maybe if there wasn't enough daylight, he would have set up camp and trained for a bit…

But that wouldn't come for a while. If one thing was certain, he wouldn't be travelling again for a long, long time.

He groaned. When he had agreed to stay at the school yesterday, he had thought it would be just long enough for him to learn about the region and the island challenge. If his mom might have implied somewhere that it wasn't going to be like that, he had failed to catch it. It was always the same with him. He always failed to grasp the hidden meanings behind all the complicated stuff people said around him till it came back to hurt him. Why couldn't things be simpler, as in a pokémon battle? _Again_. His thoughts had drifted onto battling again, which reminded him of all the stuff that had happened since the morning...

 _"...looks like you are going to join the Pokémon Trainers' Academy after all," noted Professor Oak in an unfazed tone. Before setting off to see Akala and spend another day with his mom before they separated, Ash was expected to visit Principal Oak to confirm his decision and to finalize the courses he would receive. Ash figured it would only be fair to let his mentor and his pokémon know before actually confirming anything._

" _You bet!" exclaimed Ash excitedly. "I want to learn all about the island challenge before I actually begin it."_

 _Oak sighed. "Where did you hear about the island challenge Ash?" After a contemplative pause, he added, "Anyways… I don't think you will be allowed to compete in one. As far as I know, it is something sacred to the Alolans and they do not let an outsider attempt it. If that is the reason you are joining the school, then it won't work."_

 _Ash merely shrugged as he showed off his recently acquired trinket. "I don't think they'll bother much about it if I told him that Tapu-Koko gave it to me himself…" Professor's eyes widened. "How…" He gasped, then desperately tried to prevent his excitement show itself on his face. "Young man, this is a remarkable feat even by your standards. Meeting Legendary pokémon is one thing and saving them is remarkable too… but being rewarded by one…? Tell me Ash, what did you manage to do in a single day to gain such a boon?"_

 _Funnily enough, Ash had to think for quite a few moments about it. "Hmm… in the morning I played beach volleyball… sharpedo ride, that bug pokémon, the school, team skull… then just going to his shrine and Iki Town and then before I knew, he was trying to tell me to follow him out of the restaurant." This followed by Oak drilling Ash about every single detail from his day today, right to the very last pokémon of the skull grunts and the Z-move. After all was said and done, professor smiled and said, "Ash… you can never even begin to understand how grateful I am to you."_

"… _Huh?" Ash sure hadn't expected that to come out of the blue._

" _All the places you have travelled as of yet have long been open to trainers of the world, and I already knew a lot about them even before you attempted their gyms. Alola is not such a region. There's a reason you have never seen a Z-move before. And in only one day, you were able to witness it as well as gain a right to it from a guardian deity. Plus, your interactions with Tapu-Koko helped me learn a new quirk about it…" Oak became thoughtful. "Say, did you tell Samson about this?"_

" _Erm… no," Ash replied. "It was mom who called to tell him."_

" _Well then Ash. Thanks for reporting this to me. However, I suggest you head to the Pokémon Trainers' Academy as soon as you can. I'll tell Samson meanwhile."_

 _Ash was certainly happy about this development, all things considered. With what professor Oak had told him though… his excitement and resolve had, if anything, been powered up to ten as he skipped around in his eagerness till he finally reached the Pokémon school with his mom and Mimey, and made his way to the Principal office._

 _The solemn faces he saw there quickly made him jarringly aware that things weren't going to be as smooth sailing as he had thought._

 _Professor Kukui was standing nearest to the open door with a furrowed brow and a small frown. His hands were crossed and his back tight, as if readying himself for something unpleasant. Principal Oak was sitting beside his working desk with the fingertips of his right hand pressing against his forehead. His face was wearing a grim expression, which reminded Ash of the times when he had seen his own mentor genuinely worried._

 _Even as he entered the room, both sets of eyes automatically gravitated to the ring on his right wrist. Thankfully for him though, the gents finally gave him a strained smile._

" _Something wrong?" Delia asked, as Mimey silently removed himself from this particular conversation. Pikachu was eyeing everyone warily from his perch on Ash's shoulder._

 _Without preamble, Oak began. "Ash Ketchum. I have heard that you received this Z-ring from Tapu-Koko. Is that correct?"_

 _Ash gulped visibly. "Y-yes," he replied meekly._

" _Can I hear your complete account of what happened since you last left this office?" The Principal asked in what seemed to be a less-used but well-prepared kind of tone for him. A tone that tolerated no denial, no attempt at an excuse… his voice was as commanding as a Principal really. Ash did the only sensible thing in his current situation; he launched himself into as full an account as he could manage right from the moment Mallow had taken him away. After a long stretch of time in which he was the only one talking, the two Professors finally sighed._

" _You know cousin," Kukui stated matter-of-factly, "no one in all of Alola is going to believe your story."_

 _Ash gulped. This was the last thing he had prepared himself for. Oak quickly interjected to ease Ash's mind somewhat. "No don't worry. I believe you, and so does Kukui. Samuel doesn't really lie about something this big usually." Ash let out a breath he wasn't aware he had been holding. "But this does not change the fact that there are some… complications for us to deal with."_

"… _Complications?" Ash asked._

" _Samuel has told me that you are aware of what the island challenge means to us Alolans." Seeing Ash nod, he continued. "It is a sacred ritual and the coming-of-age of the Alolan youth. The people involved will not find it easy to let a foreigner attempt it alongside them."_

" _But… we can't disregard the wishes, however whimsical, of our own island guardian. So, we need to come up with a way for you to be able to do the challenge," Kukui interjected. Ash was relieved they didn't seem to hold it against him and he was going to get to attempt the challenge after all. "However."_

" _However?" Delia, who still wasn't really sure what to make of the whole situation, inquired._

" _However… how can I explain?" Oak sighed. "You see… you are a tourist who happened to be seen by all the locals of Iki town, where incidentally our Kahuna resides and keeps his Z-rings, and now you have one for yourself…"_

 _Ash's eyes widened. He was dense, mind you, but he had been blamed often enough for others' mischiefs in the past for him to know what the Principal was getting at. "Hey! You know I didn't do such a thing!"_

" _Calm down Ash, we know," Kukui explained. "Even if we didn't believe your word, that Electrium-Z on your ring is proof enough; there is no way you've been to Ula'Ula yet." Ash didn't quite get it but figured he was fine. He assumed that he would be told everything when he needed to know. "But it would be hard for us to let you undergo the trials with the locals doubting your character. Especially when Iki town happens to be the site of Melemele's grand trial. We'll have to do things a bit differently with you. And unfortunately, as we are honour-bound to fulfil our deity's desire, you are not allowed to refuse."_

 _Ash figured it was only fair… and he would do anything to have a Z-move for his pokémon too. "Differently… how?"_

 _Oak inhaled deeply. Letting his breath out slowly as if preparing for a lecture, he noted, "and this is where I'm supposed to tell you about the island challenge." He began with an air of someone about to deliver a particular lecture for the umpteenth time, "The island challenge is the ritual of growing up for an Alolan kid, usually an eleven-year old. It is all about getting to know one's homeland and its pokémon while learning to take care of oneself as well as one's pokémon, managing one's expenses, finding one's own way etc. The challenger either receives a starter pokémon from the kahuna of his or her island or finds his own partner. Then he is required to travel through a circuit we have prepared carefully across the four islands." After pausing for a breath, he continued. "As he advances along the circuit, the general strength of pokémon he may encounter increases at a rate which synchronises with what we want his own team's strength to match. It takes a very painstaking effort from our breeders, I would say."_

" _Wow…" Ash observed. This, he thought, was much safer than his gym challenges._

 _Kukui picked up from then on, "At certain intervals, the trainer runs into the Totem pokémon, which are basically much older and more physically mature pokémon of their specie, who have been raised specifically to guard a Z-crystal. This is what constitutes a trial: Breaking into the Totem's lair, fighting your way to the crystals and retrieving one for yourself; either by defeating the Totem fair and square, or by managing to sneak past and escape its lair. The second option isn't really looked highly upon by us however."_

 _Oak added, "Each completed trial gives you a Z-crystal for a particular type. You see, all of our islands are best understood when associated with some natural energies, and getting a Z-crystal often entails knowing about them. Akala for instance is often tied in with the waters of the Brooklet Hill's lakes, the grass from the Lush jungle, the fires of the Wela volcano and the precious rocks mined in the Diglett's Tunnel. Hence, the crystals found there are those of Fire, Water and Grass."_

 _Ash was intrigued despite himself. "What about Rock?"_

" _Once the challenger completes at least a trial, he is considered eligible to compete in the Grand trial of that island," Oak replied without missing a beat. "The reward for the Akala grand trial is the Rockium-Z among other things. Once a grand trial is completed, the challenge for that island is supposed to be successful."_

 _Ash thought for a moment. "So… I travel through your circuit, complete a trial, and then a grand trial?" He whooped. "Alright! When can I begin?"_

 _Kukui sighed. This, he thought, was NOT going to be easy. "No Ash. You are not just another challenger, and we can't let you tour the circuit like everyone else. For one thing, it is meant for eleven-year olds and you are going to stand out to the locals. Then there is the fact that you don't look remotely Alolan. People might cause you… problems if you travel regularly. And that's not even considering how YOU would feel doing something only younger kids seem to be doing, especially when they would most certainly be better than you at it. Also, what we pointed out about you being in Iki town yesterday…"_

 _Ash gaped. So, he thought, he wasn't going to get to travel the region as was proper? "How will I do it then?"_

" _Firstly, you will have to complete the course which every Alolan student takes before attempting this trial. It will involve learning about the Z-moves and how to perform them. We will have to let you do it in private because it would be awkward to you to sit in the same class as nine to twelve-year old kids." Oak explained. "Secondly, not every Kahuna will trust your word. We will have to allow them to judge your character themselves before they even let you compete in a trial. If they approve, you will be led to the sites rather than going there yourself. I hope you understand why this is going to be necessary."_

 _Ash stared at the professors numbly. When he had thought about joining the school and even competing in the island challenge, being grounded at an unknown place was the last thing he had thought possible. But that was what had effectively been suggested. Not to mention the fact there will be no travels, no discoveries, no adventure… since the day he had been a trainer, he realised, the only time he had felt something similar was when Pikachu was away from him and in some kind of trouble… or when he had to learn saying goodbye to his friends. AND he was not allowed to refuse because of it being a legendary pokémon's whim. Only the Alolans knew how long it would all take. Time which, he sadly thought, could have been used to attempt a gym challenge somewhere and compete in a league…in his preoccupied state, the mundane question of what a 'Kahuna' was didn't even register in his mind._

And so, here he was touring this summer paradise with a newfound sense of desperation. His heart wasn't truly in it however. He had not realised how much he travelled just for the sake of the sheer joy of doing so before he had been faced with this unavoidable prospect, and his mind had kept drifting to that train of thought throughout his time in the Hano Grand Resort, the Konikoni city as well as the Wela Volcano Park. Nothing, however beautiful, could snap him out of it for long.

Finally, deciding Ash has moped enough for the day, Delia turned to him and said seriously, "You know Ash, you can stop being like that. I think it was all for the best anyway."

"Wha-" Ash turned to look at her wide-eyed. "What? Why mom? I need to keep travelling, having adventures and becoming stronger so that I can become a pokémon master!"

"Ash, I'm sorry, but you do realise that you cannot keep travelling forever, don't you? You _will_ have to stop one day."

That didn't help. "Why?" he asked hurtfully. "I can keep travelling as much as I want to! And you have always supported me before!" Ash countered defiantly.

"Piika!" For once, even Pikachu didn't feel like siding with Delia. She was basically suggesting that, he thought, Ash's dream didn't matter? That his being made to stop in Alola was a good thing?

"Please listen to me for once Ash," Delia explained herself sadly, "that was then, but now you are sixteen. Tell me, how often do you meet travelling trainers who are older than you? How many of your past rivals have been younger?"

Ash realised that, indeed, all his rivals except for Alain had been younger than him, since Unova at least. But that is not to say that older trainers did not exist; in fact, all those trainers who had defeated him in a league had been years older than him. "Older trainers aren't that rare you know," he replied.

"Okay then. But what will it be like after five more years? When you will be one of the few older people travelling and everyone around you will be a kid? When you won't be able to find people your age who want to travel with you, and will have to go on alone?" Delia kept coming. It was about time really, when she thought about it. She loved Ash very much but she had some responsibilities as a mother, and one of it was helping him grow up into an adult. She had wanted to delay this moment till he at least came of age, but this was as good a time as any. "Even if you don't realise this now, your heart would eventually grow out of this life which you enjoy so much at present." She looked at Pikachu. "Unlike Pikachu there, you _cannot_ choose if you want to grow up or not. I'm not saying you shouldn't travel again, but it will be better if you use this time in Alola to learn to live when you aren't consistently on a journey."

"But-" Ash asked, with tears starting to form in his eyes. "What about my dreams? My goals? Will I never be able to become a pokémon master?" Seeing his master's agitation, Pikachu nuzzled his cheek gently and made comforting noises. "But all the other strong trainers, the champions and the Elite-fours, are adults too! If they can keep travelling, why can't I?" he added stubbornly.

Delia sighed as she realised that she wouldn't be able to convince him alone. She didn't really know enough about these trainers to be able to answer him. "You know what Ash, just think about what I said till we return to Melemele. When we go to discuss your courses with Principal Oak, you can talk more about it with him. Like it or not though, you will have to accept it this once," she said sadly. Thankfully for Ash, Principal Oak had given him some time to come to terms with his situation before they could discuss Ash's courses. Delia knew that he wasn't going to like that discussion after all, with what the Oaks had planned for him, and adding it to what he had just been told in the morning would have been too much for him to handle. Ash weakly nodded as they turned away from the lakes.

When the two reached the school, they found professor Kukui standing at the front entrance. On seeing them, he beckoned them towards him. "Ah Ash," he said, noticing the forlorn look on his face. "Delia," he said, nodding to the woman, "can I have a few words with him? We will meet you in the Principal's room." Delia nodded back and went on ahead. Although she didn't quite know the man well, Delia believed that he was fundamentally nice, and that he had some experience as a trainer. If anyone could help her boy, only someone who had been in his situation before could. Nonetheless, she stayed just about near enough to eavesdrop and hopefully intervene if the professor somehow hurts Ash.

Kukui waited for Delia to gain her distance before he could start talking to her son. He didn't mind her attempt to eavesdrop, it was only natural; anyway, what was important was that Ash didn't know she was nearby. "Okay Ash, out with it. What's so bad about not going on a journey that is making you so grumpy, huh?"

"I want to be a pokémon master, and to do that I need to keep getting stronger and competing in leagues. And there isn't even one here!" Ash all but whined. "It's not like I don't want to learn how to use Z-moves, but I cannot stay here for so long!"

"Don't worry, I understand how you feel. But don't fret about not getting to compete in a league at least," the professor said with a wink. "Though buddy, is that how you think you'll become a pokémon master, huh?"

"Of course, it is!" Ash replied unflinchingly.

"Then what, exactly, is the difference between a master and a damn strong battling trainer, eh Ash?" Kukui pointed, smirking.

"Masters are the strongest! They are stronger than the normal trainers!" the trainer replied equally confidently.

 _Stubborn, eh?_ Kukui chuckled lightly, earning a glare from Ash and Pikachu. "Pii! Pikapi pikachu!" The mouse threatened, almost as if ordering him to let his trainer be. "Hey, don't sweat it Pikachu. I mean no harm," Kukui hastily added while holding up both his hands in a defensive position, and gave a terse glance towards Delia. At least she seemed interested in hearing him out before passing her judgement… "Okay then… if masters are the strongest, who _do_ you consider a pokémon master then?" He asked instead, humouring Ash.

This made him furrow his brow in concentration, "Well… when I was a kid, we all used to call Lance a pokémon master," he recalled. "I wanted to be just like him when I began my journey." After a pause, he added. "But if Lance _is_ a pokémon master, I guess Cynthia is too… and perhaps even Alder…?" Ash looked towards his pikachu. "How strange. I've never really thought about it since I set off on my journey." The electric mouse pokémon looked towards his trainer, incredulous.

 _Checkmate._ "So then cousin," Kukui asked with a hint of laughter in his eyes, "What is the difference between a regional champion and a pokémon master?"

Ash was left speechless. He had been thoroughly outplayed here and he knew it. But what was professor getting at, and why now, of all times? He asked Kukui as much.

"Oh, nothing really. Though as far as I know, there is no way to tell if a person is a pokémon master… You know, I have heard all people you talked about being called a pokémon master some time in my own journey. But some people also call people like professor Oak and even one or two nurse Joys pokémon masters." Ash's eyes widened comically. "Wait what?" Kukui nudged the kid playfully. "You didn't expect that huh?" Ash nodded.

"Well… a pokémon master is not a formal title like that of a champion, Ash. So, it is actually whatever you want it to be." Kukui said seriously. "Professor Oak told us that you have wanted to be a pokémon master since you began traveling. Do you not simply want to be a champion instead? Or just win a league?" He grinned. "Or… do you just want to keep making friends and having adventures?"

Ash thought for a long moment, before finally adding, "All of it, I guess."

Kukui smiled at the boy kindly. "I guess that makes a lot of sense to you now, doesn't it?" Ash, despite himself, found his lips twitch upwards. "As I said, don't worry about a league just yet. And who said you cannot make friends and have adventures while you're here Ash? I bet you will end up having as much fun in the end as your routine journeys. Just give this an honest shot. I'm counting on you, 'kay buddy?"

"Okay," Ash sighed, finally feeling somewhat mollified. If what professor said _was_ what he wanted to be, then things might just turn out fine in the end. Not to mention he would get to use those Z-moves as well.

Wordlessly, the two started making their way to the Principal's chamber. As they were climbing the final staircase before they reached the correct level, Ash glanced towards the professor and asked, "What does being a pokemon master mean to you, professor?"

Kukui stopped in his tracts. "Ash… let's just say that is meant the same to me as it does to you once, but today it has a different meaning entirely. Just so you know… Lance, or even Cynthia isn't nearly the strongest battler around. There are multiple battlers who are stronger… but they are not pokemon trainers, and should never be mistaken to be pokemon masters for even an instant." With this mysterious statement, the move researcher turned his gaze straight ahead and reached the door to Samson Oak's room in three quick, long strides.

"Alola Ash!" Principal Oak greeted him from his seat at the orange twin-sofa seats in almost the centre of his large workplace. Delia and Mimey, who were seated across the low wooden table ahead of him, turned around to have a look. Ash didn't quite notice the grateful look Delia shot Kukui before turning back towards the large, flat panel television which was tethered to the otherwise empty wall on the door's side. Said television was apparently doubling-up as a videophone at the moment, with professor Oak's wrinkled silhouette visibly conversing from Pallet town. "How was Akala? I expect it was beautifly?" Seeing the principal sir's puns back, Ash chuckled softly. _He seems back to normal to say the least._

"Alola principal sir," Ash greeted him back. "I kinda didn't notice anything… much there," he added somewhat guiltily, "I'm sorry." He looked towards first his mom, then Mimey and finally principal Oak.

"No worries Ash!" Oak cheerfully responded, "All's well that elgyems well! Beheeyem happy and forget the past, I would say." He clasped his hands together and went on. "Now, for your courses…" he let that hang in the air.

"I suggest the "Culture and pokémon of Alola and beyond to start with…" Oak continued.

"Hey, that's Mallow's course! It's cool, I guess." Ash agreed.

"Well… It is, fundamentally, the most basic course available to teenagers in this school. And I will be able to slip some lessons to help you on your island challenge too. But most importantly, it will help us to learn about the Islands somewhat, and, more importantly, have some fun." Kukui explained. Delia chimed in, "I think that's wonderful. But that's it?"

"That's all we can nominate the student for at the moment," principal Oak replied seriously. "Of course, since it isn't a heavy course, we can allow Ash to pick up one or two courses of his liking, depending on the first thing he chooses."

As Delia was about to ask which all options Ash had, the boy chimed in, "Well, I want the course on pokémon battling…" "Rejected," Oak replied promptly without altering his tone much. Ash gaped. "Rejected? Why?"

Kukui explained, "Well Ash, I am the strongest battler among the school staff, and I believe that you know all there is to know about that subject. Hence, I am not going to let you waste your time in the battling classes."

Ash was dumbfounded. "…so, does that mean that on top of having to stay put for around an year, I'll have to stay without pokémon battles too?" He groaned. And here he was, he thought, supposed to have fun!

Kukui turned to the teacher's plan. As if trying to soften the deal for Ash, he asked tentatively, "What all moves does Pikachu know?"

Ash looked up and responded in a low voice, "Thunderbolt, electroball, iron tail, quick attack… volt-tackle… and yep, agility, thundershock , tackle... Why?" he added.

"Hmm… Ash, I recall that pikachu do not learn Iron tail naturally. How did you teach yours?"

"Um…" Ash tried to recall, momentarily forgetting his disappointment over not being given a battling class, "It was in Hoenn, right buddy?" Pikachu nodded. "Yeah right. It was in Hoenn, I kinda needed something against the Rock-type gym, and a guy helped me teach it to Pikachu." He looked towards his partner. "Funny how I can't really recall his name…"

"Oh," Kukui said blandly. "Say Ash, have you ever taught a pokémon a move by yourself? Without getting help from someone else, I mean."

Ash recalled, "Well… I taught Sceptile bullet seed after a fashion… though I guess he got it only because he was annoyed by me." Ash chuckled. "Yeah… I taught Krookodile and Greninja aerial ace. But I guess it was due to all the time I spent perfecting it with Swellow and that man, Vladimir, was it?"

"So," the move researcher concluded. "You are an Aerial Ace master huh?" He gave Ash a cheeky grin. "You know what? I think a pokémon master should master everything about pokémon. You are a master at battling," he added, causing Ash to look up at what was, perhaps, the highest compliment he had ever gotten in his whole life. "But… aren't their moves as much a part of them as their natural wish to get stronger and protect themselves?" Ash nodded. "In fact, as much as a pokémon wants to be stronger, it wants to learn a lot of new moves, moves which make it different from the wild pokémon… am I right, Pikachu?"

"Pi pikachu," the electric mouse agreed.

"Say Ash… have you ever seen a move tutor?"

"Um, yeah," Ash replied. "My Swellow learned Aerial Ace with one's help as I said before."

"How did you feel about his or her methods?" Kukui pressed, while Oak let his professor handle this situation. Apparently, within the short time they had been together, Kukui had already found a way to connect with the kid. And why won't he, when the life Ash had today was what Kukui had always wanted for himself too?

"They were awesome!" Ash replied cheerfully, as Kukui realised just how well distractions worked on Ash. "He had a special obstacle course and all those targets, and he broke the move into steps…"

"Ash," Kukui interrupted seriously, "do you want to learn how to teach moves like that. A lot of moves, and not just Aerial Ace? Moves like Thunderpunch for example? Think about it. Even if you cannot battle as much as you wish, you can still learn enough to be able to teach a lot of new moves to your pokémon back home."

Ash's eyes widened. "Yes!" he exclaimed excitedly, already thinking about all the new moves his pokémon might have in the future.

"It's settled then," Oak finally said. "Culture of Alola and Move-tutoring… both with you, eh Kukui?" Kukui nodded. "And since move-tutoring is a demanding course, I don't think you should take anything else for now."

Thus, Ash's new school timetable was wrapped up and assigned to him, and his good move was pretty much restored, as his second day in Alola ended. He was eagerly looking forward to the next day, when he would be able to tour the Ula'Ula and the Poni islands. But this time, even if he knew it to be the last time he will get to travel for a year, he wasn't disappointed. He vowed to himself that he would make the most of his final day on a journey.

In a place which no one could quite describe by any term of distance from the earth, a group of four men were staring at a humongous perch made of pitch-black rocks. These rocks had jagged edges, which reflected the faint bluish light falling over them in all directions, making the slate grey floor glow somewhat eerily. The four men had come here seeking the beast of inter-dimensional travel, Lunala, who was currently floating in the sky and facing the group of men dressed up in similar white uniforms, streaked with stripes as purple as their hair on the sides. "Lunala," began one of those men in a calm tone edged with just a hint of desperation. "I think you might have noticed the absence of light in Ultra Megapolis and beyond."

"Lu-naal." The ghost agreed.

"Necrozma is at large in this world, and we have been appointed to go to the dimension of seven colours to fetch life for our universe by the Ultra Recon Squad. We need your help in reaching there." The man, who was presumably the leader of the group, withdrew a puple-coloured ball. "We have also been allowed to offer you to come with us to the other dimension to protect you from being consumed by Necrozma. If you so desire, that is," he added, managing to keep his voice remarkably calm despite his doubts, and not to mention fear, over this whole situation. "I am Phyco, leader of the mission-light," he saluted.

"Naa!" Lunala froze the four humans in their places with a telekinesis so powerful they couldn't even dare to twitch a muscle. It then began gathering energy from the surroundings and surrounded itself in a bright white light. The Ultra Recon Squad wondered what they had done wrong to enrage the powerful beast to form what looked like his Moongeist Beam… however, the beast simply started channeling all its absorbed energy in a little, cloud-like formation.

"It is birthing a cosmog…" Phyco wondered aloud. "Maybe it is trying to ensure that this world has a chance to fight back if we fail in our battle. This might mean that it is consenting to come with us."

Sure enough, a small cloud-like pokémon was resting on the perch. That done, Lunala released its hold over the mens' bodies, slowly drifted towards them and let itself be captured wordlessly.

After it was released from the bonds of its new beast ball, it slowly channelled energy into its head, and what looked like a hole with bright blue lines showing its disjoint character from their own dimension ripped open in the sky. Lunala descended and grasped the men, two each, in each of its claws. The beast of Moon and the humans thus travelled across dimensions towards the Altar of the Sunne and Moone on the land of seven colours.

The little pokémon they had left behind however was attracted by the bright lights which didn't quite let it slumber. "Mog! Mog." The curious creature levitated itself to a position from where the lingering updraft produced from Lunala's flight could carry it towards the source. Laughing merrily, the baby pokémon passed through the sinking hole and alighted on the Altar itself. Pleased but tired, it swiftly drifted into sleep.

 **Author's Note:**

 **1) I am not satisfied with this ending, but I wanted to get this chapter out before I got occupied with some unavoidable facets of my life. Based on your opinions, I will proceed accordingly. I plan on Ash receiving Nebby earlier so that I could spread out the Aether arc and add a new spin to the events.**

 **2) I think I am facing problems with my descriptions of scenes and backdrops. I am more comfortable writing character interactions and POVs as it is. I'll be working on it from the next chapters onwards, so expect a dip in quality. I am not quite sure this chapter was the best either.**

 **3) I will have to reduce my update schedule from now on. I hope to still pull off a chapter per one/two weeks, but I'd like to plan how my story is going to proceed forward before I start writing again.**

 **4) Next up is day three of Ash in Alola, and one or two surprises along the way. Then we will have an Iris interlude. Hopefully this is enough time to plan Ash's school arc.**

 **5) As soon as I figure out how to, I will add a poll on whether you guys want Team Rocket or not, and how do you want them to be.**

 **6) I hope I did not end up solving Ash's conflicts too easily.**

 **Thanks for reading. Please review**


	9. Author's Note

**Author's note:**

Hey guys... it has been a while hasn't it? Anyways, I'm extremely sorry to say that I won't be continuing this fic. If you wish, hear me out on the reasons.

1) As I went into this fic, I had no clear goal in mind. The only story I had somewhat planned was how Kukui trains Ash. So, all it would have become would be a training montage.

2) I realized that there is no shortage of fics out there in which authors use the outline of the game plot and write about how Ash or an OC goes on a journey, catches pokemon, battles gyms and wins the league. My fic would have gone down the same route for Max. As for Ash, I was planning on using anime as reference, but I have no ideas how to make things more interesting. I might be an all-or-none person for it, but I lost motivation due to these reasons.

If anyone wants to continue this story, please PM me. Thanks.


End file.
